Search for missing Malaysia Airlines plane to resume in the current month

Over eleven years after Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 disappeared with 239 people on board, Malaysian authorities have announced plans to restart efforts to locate the aircraft's wreckage this month. The Ministry of Transport stated on December 3 that the deep-sea search is scheduled to begin on December 30 and will continue intermittently for a period of 55 days.

The operation will be conducted by the U.S.-based company Ocean Infinity, which has previously led searches for the missing plane. The company will concentrate on a "targeted zone identified as having the highest probability of discovering the aircraft," according to the ministry.

Flight MH370 went missing on March 8, 2014, while en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. Despite pieces of the plane appearing on various shores over the years, the main wreckage has never been located. Ocean Infinity previously conducted a search in 2018. A subsequent attempt announced in December 2024 was suspended in April due to adverse weather conditions. Earlier searches by multiple international authorities also failed to yield results.

The exact location of the renewed search has not been disclosed, but previous efforts focused on the southern Indian Ocean. The Ministry of Transport confirmed that the search will be carried out under a service agreement with Ocean Infinity, which includes a $70 million payment if substantial wreckage is recovered.

Flight MH370 departed Kuala Lumpur at approximately 12:41 a.m. on March 8, 2014, with a scheduled five-hour flight to Beijing. Less than an hour after takeoff, the Boeing 777-200ER lost communication with air traffic control without sending a distress signal. Investigators believe the aircraft continued flying for several hours before ultimately crashing into the Indian Ocean. The exact cause of the communication loss remains unknown, although a 2018 report suggested it might have been deliberately disabled by someone on board.

The plane carried more than 150 passengers from China, around 50 from Malaysia, and others from countries including France, Australia, Indonesia, India, the United States, Ukraine, and Canada. To date, no remains have been recovered.

Author: Ava Mitchell