The search for the wreckage of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 will resume on December 30, more than a decade after the plane disappeared with 239 people on board, Malaysian authorities said.
This new search, which will last 55 days, had begun in March but was suspended shortly afterwards due to poor weather conditions.
“The latest development underlines the… [Malaysia’s] commitment to provide closure to the families affected by this tragedy,” the Ministry of Transport said on Wednesday, according to local media.
Flight MH370, a Boeing 777, disappeared in 2014 while traveling from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, sparking the largest search in aviation history.
Exploration company Ocean Infinity is leading the current search under a ‘no find, no fee’ arrangement. It will receive $70 million if the wreckage is found, Transport Minister Loke Siew Fook said earlier.
Previous attempts include a multinational search involving 60 ships and 50 aircraft from 26 countries that ended in 2017, and a 2018 effort by Ocean Infinity ended after three months.
Flight MH370 lost contact with air traffic control less than an hour after takeoff on March 8, 2014, and radar showed it had deviated from its original flight path.
It remains one of the greatest aviation mysteries, still haunting the families of those on board. Over the years, many had called for a new search, noting that they were struggling to find closure.
The incident has also given rise to a host of conspiracy theories, including speculation that the pilot had deliberately shot down the plane or that it had been hijacked.
A 2018 investigation found that the plane’s controls were likely deliberately manipulated to throw it off course, but no conclusions were drawn.
Investigators said at the time that “the answer can only be decisive if the wreckage is found.”
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