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Courtesy Planetalking:

 

  


MH370 search will be extended if current zone proves empty

Ben Sandilands | Apr 16, 2015 4:14PM


A moderate sea state for Fugro Discovery, one of the search vessels

The next of kin of the victims of missing flight MH370 have been informed by text message that the ocean floor search will continue if nothing is found within the current priority search zone by a sonar scanning exercise due to finish by the end of next month.

However there is no official word  yet from the tripartite talks being held in Kuala Lumpur today between the search partners, Malaysia, China, and Australia, which is managing the search in an area located six days sailing time southwest of Fremantle in the southern Indian Ocean.

The talks are being held to review the search to date and decide on the further course of the quest to locate and retrieve wreckage from the missing Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777-200ER which vanished early in a flight between Kuala Lumpur and Beijing on 8 March 2014.
Receipt of the text message by some of the relatives of the 239 people who were on board the flight is being reported by ChannelNews Asia.

According to these early reports a further 60,000 square kilometers of sea floor lying along or near the so called 7th arc of potential crash sites will be examined by deep sea towed sonar scanning devices if the current similarly sized priority area is exhausted without result by late in May.

& update... :

MH370 search extension comes with a not so subtle hint


Ben Sandilands | Apr 16, 2015 5:51PM


No wreckage means no closure for furious next of kin

While there were no surprises in the official statement at the end of today’s tripartite review of the MH370 search, there was one not so subtle hint from Australia’s deputy PM Warren Truss.

Mr Truss said he was confident that the search effort would find the wreckage of the missing Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777-200 ER ” if it is there”.

This is a significant change from the prior official line that ‘it is there, although precisely where is the issue’.

However the expected headline announcement, previously sent by text to the next of kin of the 239 people who disappeared with the jet when it diverted from its KL to Beijing flight on 8 March last year, is that there would be a phase two extension of the search if the current priority zone turns up nothing by the end of this May.

Mr Truss said phase two if needed would involve another 60,000 square kilometres of deep water towed sonar scanning of sea bed, which would on completion mean ALL of the area deemed most likely to contain the wreckage of the jet would have been searched.

Malaysia’s transport minister, Liow Tiong Lai, said the search so far had found 220 category three, six category two and a single category one object of interest on the ocean floor, all of which could have been from MH370 and on closer examination were found to be natural objects or from shipping.

Going through the comments made at the media briefing, Mr Truss also mentioned that the  search effort would not just find any wreckage if it was there, but was ‘within the range of the equipment’. This appears to be recognition that in the very deepest or most complex parts of the sea floor, in places up to 6500 metres  below the surface, and with 2000 metre cliffs, it could be that MH370 might be missed.

This concern has been mentioned in passing on several occasions in recent months.

And finally the DPM Truss media release:

MH370 Third Tripartite Ministerial Meeting

Media Release
WT107/2015
16 April 2015


Senior Ministers from Malaysia, Australia and the People's Republic of China met today to discuss the next steps in the search for MH370.
Malaysian Minister of Transport, Mr Liow Tiong Lai, chaired the meeting with the Australian Deputy Prime Minister, the Honourable Warren Truss MP, and the Chinese Minister of Transport, Mr Yang Chuantang.

Ministers acknowledged and expressed their appreciation to the nations that have provided assets, expertise and assistance for the search for missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 over the past year.

Ministers also acknowledged the grief and sense of loss felt by the families and friends of those lost on board flight MH370. Ministers recognised the importance of the continuous communication to the Next-of-Kin in line with the governments' commitment to keep the families apprised of the latest developments.

The Ministers were given a detailed briefing on the thorough and rigorous work being undertaken to search for the aircraft. Discussions included details of the technology used in the underwater search, assessment and analysis of data collected, classification of sonar contacts as well as the challenges and risks in the search operations in such a remote and difficult location in extreme depths.

While acknowledging the significant work undertaken to date and that about 40 percent of the current search area is yet to be completed, Ministers acknowledged the importance of continuing the planning for next steps in the search. In this regard, the discussion focused on the recovery arrangements if the aircraft is found as well as the next steps if the aircraft is not found in the current search area of 60,000 square kilometres. Ministers agreed that it is critical to have arrangements in place to enable a timely and effective response for both scenarios.

In the event the aircraft is found and accessible, Ministers agreed to plans for recovery activities, including securing all the evidence necessary for the investigation in accordance with the requirements of Annex 13 to the Chicago Convention.

Should the aircraft not be found within the current search area, Ministers agreed to extend the search by an additional 60,000 square kilometres to bring the search area to 120,000 square kilometres and thereby cover the entire highest probability area identified by expert analysis. Ministers recognise the additional search area may take up to a year to complete given the adverse weather conditions in the upcoming winter months. Upon completion of the additional 60,000 square kilometres, all high probability search areas would have been covered.

Ministers remain committed to bring closure and some peace to the families and loved ones of those on board Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, recognising the positive and productive nature of the ongoing collaboration. All three countries reiterated their commitments to use best efforts in the search for the aircraft.

Ministers also emphasised that the families of the passengers and crew remain a priority and the governments will continue to provide updates whenever new information is available on the developments and outcomes of the search operations.

• Map showing the expanded search area
  

MTF...P2