Malaysia signals it may revive search for missing flight MH370, a decade later 

Malaysia’s Ministry of Transport announced on Sunday that a Texas-based company may resume the search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 (MH370) as the 10th anniversary of the plane’s mysterious disappearance approaches this week. did.

Ocean Infinity has offered to conduct another “no discovery, no cost” search on the seabed of the southern Indian Ocean, five years after the company ended its civilian search for the plane’s wreckage, Transport Minister Anthony Roque said on Sunday. stated.

A Boeing 777 disappeared from radar shortly after takeoff from Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia, on March 8, 2014. The plane was scheduled to fly to Beijing with 239 people on board. Satellite data shows the plane is believed to have veered off course and crashed into the southern Indian Ocean.

Once reliable evidence is submitted to the Malaysian government, Roque said, “we will do everything possible” to obtain cabinet approval for a new contract with Ocean Infinity. He said the company had invited him to meet in Malaysia “when he is ready to come.”

“The government remains steadfast in our resolve to locate MH370,” Roque told reporters at a commemoration event marking the 10th anniversary of the plane’s disappearance. “We hope the families and friends of the victims remain strong. We extend our deepest condolences to you and will continue to have you in our thoughts and prayers.”

The Malaysian and Chinese governments ended an official search for plane wreckage in 2017 after no clues were found, although some wreckage washed ashore on the East African coast and islands in the Indian Ocean, according to the Associated Press. . A private survey of the Indian Ocean by Ocean Infinity also yielded no results.

Rourke did not say how much Ocean Infinity would be charged if the proposed search yields results, but the 2018 contract included a $70 million fee if the remains were found. was included.

The Hill has reached out to Ocean Infinity for further comment.

KS Nathan, a member of the Boyce MH370 group that includes next of kin, told The Associated Press that Ocean Infinity had originally planned a new search last year, but the delivery of new vessels and assets delayed it. He said the Texas-based company is now in a position to revive search efforts.