
Search for long-missing flight MH370 suspended
"They have stopped the operation for the time being, they will resume the search at the end of this year," Transport Minister Anthony Loke said in a voice recording sent to AFP on Thursday by his aide.
The Boeing 777 carrying 239 people disappeared from radar screens on March 8, 2014, while en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.
Despite the largest search in aviation history, the plane has not been found.
Loke's comments come just one month after authorities said the search had resumed, following earlier failed attempts that covered vast swaths of the Indian Ocean.
An initial Australia-led search covered 120,000 square kilometres (46,300 square miles) in the Indian Ocean over three years, but found hardly any trace of the plane other than a few pieces of debris.
Maritime exploration firm Ocean Infinity, based in Britain and the United States, led an unsuccessful hunt in 2018, before agreeing to launch a new search this year.
"Right now, it's not the season," Loke said in the recording, which was made during an event at Kuala Lumpur International Airport on Wednesday.
"Whether or not it will be found will be subject to the search, nobody can anticipate," Loke said, referring to the wreckage of the plane.
Aviation mystery
The search was put on hold "due to seasonal weather changes and unavoidable prior commercial commitments", a separate statement posted on the "MH370 Families" Facebook group said.
Loke said in December that a new 15,000 square kilometre area of the southern Indian Ocean would be scoured by Ocean Infinity.
The most recent mission was conducted on the same "no find, no fee" principle as Ocean Infinity's previous search, with the government only paying out if the firm finds the aircraft.
The plane's disappearance has long been the subject of theories -- ranging from the credible to outlandish -- including that veteran pilot Zaharie Ahmad Shah had gone rogue.
A final report into the tragedy released in 2018 pointed to failings by air traffic control and said the course of the plane was changed manually.
Two-thirds of the passengers were Chinese, while the others were from Malaysia, Indonesia, Australia, and elsewhere.
Relatives of passengers lost on the flight have continued to demand answers from Malaysian authorities.
Family members of Chinese passengers gathered in Beijing outside government offices and the Malaysian embassy last month on the 11th anniversary of the flight's disappearance.
Attendees of the gathering shouted, "Give us back our loved ones!"
Some held placards asking, "When will the 11 years of waiting and torment end?"
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Al Etihad
10 hours ago
- Al Etihad
Plane with 20 aboard crashes in Tennessee, no deaths: Authorities
9 June 2025 08:33 Washington (AFP) No one was killed but several people were injured and taken to hospital on Sunday when a skydiving plane carrying 20 passengers and crew crashed in the US state of Tennessee, authorities said.A twin-engine plane used for skydiving expeditions crashed shortly after midday in Tullahoma, south of Nashville, according to local and federal officials."There were no casualties," city spokesman Lyle Russell said in a statement sent to AFP. He said a total of 20 passengers and crew were onboard the DeHaviland DH-6 Twin Otter when it crashed at the Tullahoma Regional Airport at around 12:30 pm (1730 GMT)."Three were sent for medical treatment via helicopter and one sent by ground transport for more serious injuries to local hospitals," he said, adding that "other minor injuries were treated by first responders on scene."Russell said that "no ground facilities or airport facilities were damaged and there were no injuries reported from the ground."The Federal Aviation Administration said it was investigating the crash, while the Tennessee Highway Patrol said on X that its troopers were assisting police at the scene. Images posted on social media by the highway patrol showed a small, white plane with blue trim with its nose buried into the grass and its tail and a wing broken off behind it, with police vehicles with flashing lights parked nearby.


Al Etihad
2 days ago
- Al Etihad
Fire left burning on cargo ship carrying EVs off Alaska coast
7 June 2025 15:32 WASHINGTON (AFP)A fire on a cargo ship carrying electric vehicles off the coast of Alaska has been left to burn, with salvage teams expected to intervene on Monday, according to media Alaskan coastguard received a distress call on Tuesday reporting a fire onboard the Morning Midas, a British-managed cargo ship with 22 crew members and carrying thousands of crew evacuated on a lifeboat before being rescued by another private overflight of the cargo ship, currently located around 340 miles (547 kilometers) southwest of Adak, confirmed the ship was still burning on Wednesday, the coastguard said in a statement.'Currently, there are no visual indications that the ship is taking on water or listing, and the extent of the damage is unknown,' it Eno, a spokesman for the ship's management company Zodiac Maritime, said there were no firefighting vessels nearby to help extinguish the blaze, the New York Times reported.A salvage team was expected to arrive on Monday, the outlet and the Los Angeles Times footage released by the coastguard shows smoke rising from the 600-foot (183-meter) vessel, which is reported to be carrying more than 3,000 vehicles, around 750 of which are electric or vehicles contain lithium-ion batteries, which are generally safe but can overheat and ignite if damaged. The ship is also estimated to be carrying hundreds of metric tons of gas fuel, according to the coastguard.

Middle East Eye
3 days ago
- Middle East Eye
Gaza struggles to celebrate Eid al-Adha amid war and aid blockade
Palestinians in Gaza face severe challenges as Eid al-Adha begins, with Israel's ongoing 20-month war and a tightened aid blockade making traditional celebrations nearly impossible. Eid al-Adha, the Festival of Sacrifice, typically involves slaughtering sheep or cattle and sharing meat with the poor, followed by large family meals and children receiving new clothes. However, Gaza has not seen fresh meat imports for three months, and most of its local livestock have perished. A small number of animals remain at a makeshift pen in al-Mawasi tent camp on Gaza's southern coast, but few can afford to buy them. Some children gather to watch sheep, goats, a cow, and even a camel, reciting holiday prayers amid the hardship. 'I can't even buy bread. No meat, no vegetables,' says Abdel Rahman Madi speaking to the news agency Associated Press. 'The prices are astronomical.' Nearby in Khan Younis, market stalls display stuffed sheep toys, holiday trinkets, and second-hand clothes. Yet most shoppers walk away empty-handed after seeing the steep costs. 'Before, there was an Eid atmosphere, the children were happy … Now with the blockade, there's no flour, no clothes, no joy,' says Hala Abu Nqeira speaking to AP. 'We just try to find flour for our children. Every day, we look for it at a fair price, but it's impossible to find.'] A vendor waits for customers at a livestock market ahead of Eid al-Adha, the Muslim festival of sacrifice, in the occupied West Bank city of Nablus on June 5, 2025 (AFP)