Head of the Joint Agency Coordination Centre (JACC) Angus Houston is confident that the search area for missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 in the southern Indian Ocean is correct.
“With the analysis of the handshakes between the aircraft,and the satellite, and the simulation work that also has been done to define the area in the southern Indian Ocean, I am confident that the southern ocean is the right search area.
“And I am sure in time, we fill find the aircraft in that area of the Indian Ocean,” he said at a joint press conference in Kuala Lumpur.
Houston’s comment came in response to a new lead by an Australian marine exploration firm GeoResonance that said it may have found what it believes to be the wreckage site of flight MH370 at the Bay of Bengal.
The Bay of Bengal is located between India and Myanmar, which is about 5,000km from the current search area.
Bangladesh Navy has mounted a search in that location but has found nothing so far.
“I understand three ships from Bangladesh navy are over at the reported area at the moment. As yet, they have found nothing. One of the ships has an echosounder that will assist in ensuring we have a thorough search in that particular area,” he said, adding that the search might take up take up to 8 or even 12 months.
Meanwhile, Acting Transport Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein said the team will investigate leads in relation to the missing plane but reiterated that the approach they have used for the past months was not wrong and will continue to use the same approach until the plane is found.
“I confirm that I am looking at the possibility of Sapura Kencana that has the ability to search that area because that lead can only be confirmed by getting appropriate vessels to search that area,” he said.
“But I want to stress that by doing that, we are distracting ourselves from the main search. In the event that the result from the search is negative, who is going to be responsible for that loss of time?
“It is going to be expensive in getting more vessels out there. It is going to take time and will effect the operations of our present search in the area that we have identified. Thirdly, it is going to impact to the emotions of the family. That is something that we take into consideration when deploying assets into confirming or disproving what has been announced by that particular company.”
Another press conference on flight MH370 will be held later today.
Cynthia Ng
Fri May 02 2014
Acting Transport Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein and Head of the Joint Agency Coordination Centre (JACC) Angus Houston at a press briefing in Kuala Lumpur on May 2, 2014.
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