Private firm to restart deep-sea search for missing MH370 airliner

Malaysia’s transport ministry says a renewed effort to locate Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 is set to begin this month, marking the first large-scale search for the aircraft in several years. Texas-based marine robotics company Ocean Infinity has been contracted to carry out the operation under a no-find, no-fee arrangement with the Malaysian government.

The firm led a similar mission in 2018 but ended its work without discoveries. This year’s search was paused in April because of rough weather in the Indian Ocean, where investigators believe the Boeing 777 went down. The ministry says Ocean Infinity will only be compensated if it identifies confirmed wreckage, with the agreement valued at up to 70 million dollars.

MH370 vanished on March 8, 2014, with 239 people on board during a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. The disappearance prompted one of the most extensive and costly aviation searches ever undertaken. Officials say the new effort will concentrate on refined target zones south-west of Australia, an area that has been central to previous international investigations.

While the case has no direct connection to Canada, aviation safety specialists here have long pointed to MH370 as a catalyst for improvements in global aircraft tracking standards. The renewed search comes as international regulators continue updating monitoring rules aimed at preventing similar incidents.