Jan. 5 (UPI) — The search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 is set to resume by a private U.S. exploration company, according to an airline support group.
With 239 people aboard, the Boeing 777 aircraft disappeared on March 8, 2014, on its way to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur.
Investigators believe the aircraft headed south over the Indian Ocean and about six hours into the flight plummeted into the water. No bodies were recovered and only a few fragments of the jet turned up on Africa’s eastern coast.
Without finding a trace of the aircraft, a two-year underwater search led by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau ended a year ago with a price tag of $200 million to Australian, Malaysian and Chinese taxpayers.
Ocean Infinity, a Houston-based company, offered the Malaysian government a risk-free undertaking of the project, charging a fee only if it finds the wreckage of the plane. The company has sent a ship to the possible search area while it waits for a formal contract from the government, which Ocean Infinity expects in the days ahead.
A government spokesperson said more details about the deal would be available in the coming weeks.
