Malaysia has agreed in principle to resume the search for flight MH370, the Malaysia Airlines passenger jet that mysteriously vanished on 8 March 2014, making it the most intriguing case in aviation history.
The Boeing 777 was on its way to Beijing, China, from Kuala Lumpur, the Malaysian capital with 239 people on board, when it disappeared from the radar on the aforementioned date.
Several countries, including Malaysia, have tried to locate the wreckage over the years, but with little success.
The latest development was confirmed by Malaysia’s Transport Minister Anthony Loke on Friday, December 20. Loke said the Malaysian Cabinet approved in principle an USD 70 million “no find, no fee” deal with US-based marine exploration firm Ocean Infinity to find the aircraft. This means if the company fails to find the wreckage, they’ll not get paid.
In a statement, Ocean Infinity CEO Oliver Plunkett hailed the development as “great news”. “We look forward to sharing further updates in the new year once we’ve finalised the details and the team gets ready to go,” Plunkett said.
The Malaysian government, however, is yet to finalise the specific deal of the new search, Loke said.
Ocean Infinity had tried a similar search in 2018, which ended unsuccessfully after three months, as per reports.
Before that, a multinational effort from Malaysia, Australia and China, that cost USD 150m ended in 2017, following two years of search.
As per the Malaysian lawmaker, the new search will cover a 15,000 sq km patch in the southern Indian Ocean. This was based on new data that Malaysia found to be “credible”.
“We hope this time will be positive,” Loke said.
The minister said if successful, it would give closure to the families of those on board.
What happened to Flight MH370?
The aircraft took off from Kuala Lumpur in the early hours of 8 March 2014. Just less than an hour after takeoff, it lost communication with air traffic control.
Radar showed that the aircraft deviated from its planned flight path.
While there’s consensus about the fact that the plane crashed somewhere in the southern Indian Ocean, the theories surrounding it are vast.
Some even said that the pilot, Zaharie Ahmad Shah, had gone rogue.
