KUALA LUMPUR, (Reuters) – Two weeks after a Malaysia Airlines airliner went missing with 239 people on board, officials are bracing for the “long haul” as searches by more than two dozen countries turn up little but frustration and fresh questions.
The international team hunting Flight MH370 in the remote southern Indian Ocean yielded no results yesterday, and Australia’s deputy prime minister said suspected debris there may have sunk.
Today, six aircraft began returning to the region where objects identified by satellite were spotted earlier this week, while two merchant ships were also searching the area. China, Japan and India are sending planes and Australian and Chinese navy vessels are steaming to the zone, more than 2,000km (1,200 miles) southwest of Perth.
Aircraft and ships have also renewed the search in the Andaman Sea between India and Thailand, going over areas that have already been exhaustively swept to find some clue to unlock one of the biggest mysteries in modern aviation.
Malaysian officials have been realistic about their ability to lead the operation with a global dynamic that some have said is beyond the country’s technical capabilities and expertise.
“This continues to be a multinational effort coordinated by Malaysia, involving dozens of countries from around the world,” Malaysian Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said at a briefing yesterday.
Malaysia welcomed “all assistance to continue to follow all credible leads”, said Hishammuddin, who is also acting transport minister.
He said searchers were facing the “long haul” but were conscious that the clock was ticking. The plane’s “black box” voice and data recorder only transmits an electronic signal for about 30 days before its battery dies, after which it will be far more difficult to locate.
Investigators suspect the Boeing 777, which took off from Kuala Lumpur for Beijing shortly after midnight on March 8, was deliberately diverted thousands of miles from its scheduled path. They say they are focusing on hijacking or sabotage but have not ruled out technical problems.
