 |
| Picture from bernama |
KUALA LUMPUR, March 24 (Bernama) -- After 17 days of waiting in agony, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak tonight announced that the flight path of the missing Malaysia Airlines (MAS) Flight MH370 ended in the southern Indian Ocean.
He made the announcement following the never before used analysis by the UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) and Inmarsat, the UK company which provided the satellite data which indicated the northern and southern corridors.
"Using a type of analysis never before used in an investigation of this sort, they have been able to shed more light on MH370's flight path.
"Based on their new analysis, Inmarsat and the AAIB have concluded that MH370 flew along the southern corridor, and that its last position was in the middle of the Indian Ocean, west of Perth.
"This is a remote location, far from any possible landing sites. It is therefore, with deep sadness and regret that I must inform you that, according to this new data, Flight MH370 ended in the southern Indian Ocean," Najib told a media conference at the Putra World Trade Centre (PWTC) here.
The prime minister said MAS had already spoken to the families of the passengers and crew to inform them of this development.
"For them, the past few weeks have been heartbreaking; I know this news must be harder still. I urge the media to respect their privacy, and to allow them the space they need at this difficult time," added Najib.
He noted that further details on the development would be announced tomorrow. Najib said the unscheduled press conference tonight was held to inform the world of the new development at the earliest opportunity.
"We share this information out of a commitment to openness and respect for the families, two principles which have guided this investigation," he said.
Also present tonight were Acting Transport Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein, Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Anifah Aman and Department of Civil Aviation director-general Datuk Azharuddin Abdul Rahman.
MAS chief executive officer Ahmad Jauhari Yahya was seen crying as the announcement was made.
At the time of the announcement, tears streamed down the face of many reporters who have been following the development of the search and rescue operation to locate MH370, which entered its 17th day today.
MH370, which carried 227 passengers and 12 crew members on a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, disappeared from the radar screen about an hour after departing from the KL International Airport at 12.41am on March 8.
The aircraft was scheduled to land in Beijing at 6.30am (Malaysian time) on the same day.
Search efforts were divided into two corridors, namely the northern corridor from the Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan border to the northern part of Thailand, and the southern corridor covering the areas from Indonesia to the southern part of the Indian Ocean.
The SAR operation involving MH370 was described as the biggest of its kind in history, with more than 27 countries involved.
0 comments: