Why search for MH370, missing for 12 years, is starting again

Malaysia Airlines' MH370, flying from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, vanished without a trace on March 8, 2014. This didn't just lead to one of aviation history's most intensive search operations, but birthed several theories. With no answers to the mysteries surrounding the ill-fated MH370, Malaysia on Wednesday announced that a search for the missing plane would begin this month. Malaysia's Transport Ministry said Ocean Infinity, an American marine robotics company, would restart scouring the seabed for traces of the debris of the missing MH-370.

Flight MH370 departed from Kuala Lumpur Airport (KLIA) for Beijing with 227 passengers and 12 crew before disappearing, becoming one of aviation’s greatest mysteries.

The Malaysian government said that the search that would resume on December 30 would continue intermittently for 55 days. The government inked a service agreement with Ocean Infinity on March 25 this year.

But why is the Malaysian government resuming search operations for MH370, missing for almost 12 years now? Here are three main reasons why Malaysia has decided to resume the hunt now:

1. CLOSURE FOR MH370 VICTIMS' FAMILIES

The Malaysian government wants to give closure to the families of the 239 people on board the ill-fated flight. Between 2014 and 2017, Malaysia, Australia, and China jointly searched a 1,20,000-sq-km rectangle in the southern Indian Ocean but located nothing.

In 2018, Ocean Infinity took over and scanned a smaller 25,000-sq-km area that experts believed was more likely to hold the wreckage. That three-month effort also ended without success.

Many relatives, especially from China, which had 153 nationals on the flight, have repeatedly asked Malaysia not to abandon the search.

Spotting of debris and the resultant research would allow relatives to know how and why involving their loved ones.

2. NO FINANCIAL RISK FOR MALAYSIA IF PLANE NOT FOUND

The deal to carry out the search operation has no financial risk or additional investment for Malaysia if the plane is not found.

Transport Minister Anthony Loke confirmed last December that Ocean Infinity would work on a "no find, no fee" basis, the same arrangement offered in 2018.

The Malaysian government will only pay if credible wreckage is located.

Malaysia will pay Ocean Infinity $70 million only if wreckage of MH370 is discovered.

3. SEARCH TO FOCUS ON HIGH-PROBABILITY AREA

This time, the search will focus on a refined area judged to have the best chance of success. "The search will be carried out in a targeted area assessed to have the highest probability of locating the aircraft," the ministry said.

Ocean Infinity has continued analysing satellite data, ocean currents, and drift modelling since 2018, allowing the company to narrow the priority zone further.

Ocean Infinity will deploy a fleet of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) capable of operating at depths greater than 6,000 metres and covering large areas quickly.

Whether this latest attempt will solve one of aviation's biggest mysteries remains uncertain, but for the families who have waited more than a decade for answers, the search for MH370 is not yet over.

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