Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, which took off from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, has become one of the most mysterious plane crashes in the world. It has been more than ten years since this plane disappeared, but even today the world does not know what happened to the 239 passengers and crew. Now once again the hope of finding it has returned. The Malaysian government said on Wednesday that American marine robotics company Ocean Infinity will start exploring the depths of the sea again from December 30.
What is the secret of MH370?
MH370 was a Boeing 777 plane that took off from Kuala Lumpur for Beijing on the morning of 8 March 2014. The plane disappeared from air traffic radar just 39 minutes after takeoff. The pilot’s last message was- ‘Good night, Malaysian three seven zero’. After this the plane could not make contact in Vietnamese airspace. After a few minutes its transponder also got switched off. Military radar showed that the plane changed direction and started flying south over the Andaman Sea. According to satellite data, it remained in the air for several hours and probably fell in the southern Indian Ocean after running out of fuel.
Has the plane been discovered before?
International searches continued for years, but till now the main debris has not been found. The search started from the South China Sea, then extended to the Andaman Sea and then the Southern Indian Ocean. Teams from Australia, Malaysia and China explored more than 1,20,000 square kilometers of sea floor. Ships, aircraft, sonar systems and robotic submarines were continuously engaged in the search. Many times signals that were considered black boxes later turned out to be something else. In 2015, a flaperon was found on Reunion Island and later some more small pieces were found off the coast of Africa, but this did not solve the mystery.
contract awarded to find
In 2018, Ocean Infinity searched on the ‘no find, no fee’ model, but was unsuccessful. This time the Malaysian government has again given the contract to the company. The new search site is spread over 15,000 square kilometers. Ocean Infinity will get $70 million only if the debris is found. The search had to be stopped in April due to bad weather, but now the operation will resume from December 30 and will last for a total of 55 days.
What theory came about MH370?
Many theories emerged regarding the disappearance of MH370. From hijacking to cabin depressurization and power failure. The most surprising thing was that no distress call was received. No ransom was demanded, there was no bad weather and no concrete evidence of any technical fault was found. The 2018 investigation report gave a clean chit to the passengers and crew, but the possibility of ‘unlawful interference’ i.e. deliberate interference by someone was not ruled out.
Who were on board MH-370?
There were 227 passengers and 12 crew in the plane. Most of the passengers were from China. Two Iranian youths were traveling on stolen passports. 20 people were employees of American company Freescale Semiconductor. Many families were traveling in this plane, hence this accident destroyed many houses.
Now that Ocean Infinity is again entering the field with new technology and new analysis, the hope has increased that perhaps this time the ten year old mystery may be solved. However, the company has not clarified whether they have found any new clues. But they say they are focusing the search on the most promising areas, using the most advanced marine technology and the help of experts.
