The pilot of doomed Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 conducted a simulated flight deep into the remote southern Indian Ocean less than a month before the plane disappeared from radar in the same area, according to the New York Magazine.
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There is only 10,000sq km to go of the 120,000sq km search area and there is still no sign of the wreckage of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370.
This is against the wishes of numerous relatives of those on-board the plane who have long urged for the search to continue until the Boeing 777 is located.
Officials have said the search for the Boeing 777, which so far cost 180 million Australian dollars ($135 million) -the most expensive in aviation history, will end later this year unless new credible evidence is found. “We understand this will be a hard time for them and we are committed to doing everything within our means to assist”, said Liow at a joint press conference here.
Liow said the search team had so far combed more than 110,000 sq km of the sea bed, but noted that poor weather condition as well as damaged equipment had severely impacted the search progress.
Grace, whose mother was on board flight MH370, also said suggestions by a Dutch company involved in the current underwater search that the focus may be in the wrong area should prompt officials to “reassess’ and “even re-start” the search”.
Authorities hope to find a crash site and eventually recover and examine the flight data recorders for clues into what happened.
However, if no evidence surfaces that points crews in the right direction, the search could be suspended forever.
The Malaysia Airlines flight departed from Kuala Lumpur and was bound for Beijing with 239 people on board. While this statement provides little comfort, a growing theory which concerns the plane’s mysterious disappearance might just be the trigger of the eventual continuation of the search in another area.
Recovery operations in the southern Indian Ocean will be suspended after ships finish scouring the 120,000 square-kilometer (46,330 square miles) zone, ministers from Malaysia, China and Australia said in a statement Friday after meeting outside Kuala Lumpur. This decision [on search area] was based on what we know on the last communication with the aircraft.
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On Monday, the Australian and Malaysian governments confirmed a wing flap was being examined as possibly being part of MH370. “In the future, should key information leading to the location of the aircraft emerges, it will be assessed to determine our next steps”, said Yang.
