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March 9, 2015

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MH370 locator beacon battery expired

Source: AFP | March 9, 2015, Monday | Print Edition

FAMILIES marked the first anniversary of the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 yesterday as a new report revealed that the battery on its black box locator beacon had expired.

Malaysia’s Prime Minister Najib Razak said his nation remained committed to the hunt for the passenger jet believed to have crashed in the southern Indian Ocean, and was hopeful it would be found. Most of the people on board were from China.

Relatives held ceremonies in Kuala Lumpur and Beijing to remember the missing and urge authorities to never abandon the search.

The report by an international investigative team raised no red flags relating to the crew or the aircraft’s condition to indicate any cause for the disappearance.

But it said the battery powering the underwater locator beacon on the plane’s flight data recorder had an expiry date of December 2012.

The search, which is around 1,600 kilometers off Australia’s west coast, where satellite data indicate the Boeing 777 crashed, has so far yielded no sign of the missing plane.

“Together with our international partners, we have followed the little evidence that exists,” Najib said in a statement. “Malaysia remains committed to the search, and hopeful that MH370 will be found.”

The plane, with 239 passengers and crew aboard, veered from its Kuala Lumpur-Beijing route on March 8 of last year.

Relatives and friends of the missing held a public remembrance in Kuala Lumpur that included prayers and live video links with other next of kin around the world.

Praying for loved ones

In Beijing, relatives visited the Lama Temple, a popular Tibetan Buddhist place of worship and tourist site, some of them wearing T-shirts reading “Never Give Up. Search On.”

Jiang Hui, whose mother was on the flight, said: “We are here to pray for our loved ones and we hope they can come back and the truth will come out as soon as possible.”

Yesterday’s report said investigators had looked at a range of issues that included the jet captain’s and co-pilot’s personal, psychological, and financial profiles, and the backgrounds of the 10 cabin crew.

But although suspicion had fallen on pilot Zaharie Ahmad Shah and co-pilot Fariq Abdul Hamid, the report found no evidence suggesting their involvement.

“There were no behavioral signs of social isolation, change in habits or interest, self-neglect, drug or alcohol abuse of the captain, first officer and the cabin crew,” it said.

The report also noted nothing alarming about the plane’s major mechanical systems, according to available data and maintenance records.

However, it said that as there was still no trace of the jet, including the “black box” data recorders, the investigation remains a work in progress.

More than 40 percent of a designated 60,000 square kilometer zone believed to be the most likely location of the crash site has been scanned for wreckage using sophisticated sonar, but nothing related to MH370 has been found.

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott said yesterday that while the current search area is expected to be completed in May, the operation could be extended “as long as there are reasonable leads.”

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