Chinese families of Malaysian flight MH370 victims urge new search after experts say plane could be found ‘within days’

French aviation insiders say their research shows renewed hunt could find Malaysia Airlines jet, which disappeared almost a decade ago
The announcement prompts relatives of missing Chinese passengers to call for more efforts using latest information and technology

Aviation

Phoebe Zhang

Published: 8:43pm, 27 Dec 2023

Why you can trust SCMP

Relatives of Chinese passengers on the missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 refreshed their call to resume the search for the aircraft after two French experts claimed renewed efforts could find the plane “within days”.

Earlier this week, aerospace expert Jean-Luc Marchand and pilot Patrick Blelly said the mystery of the missing plane could be solved in a matter of days if there was a new search, based on their research.

The pair said the plane’s transponder was turned off and that the U-turn it took away from the flight path could not have been carried out by autopilot.

Experts claim missing MH370 flight could be found in ‘days’ with new search

Jiang Hui, whose mother Jiang Cuiyun was on the flight, told the Post that searching for the missing plane had always been the family’s “core pursuit”.

“There are now new technologies that can pinpoint new positions. I think they are all worth a try,” he said.

But Song Chunjie, a relative of another victim, said it was useless for individual experts to call for a search.

“Launching a new search should be led by the Malaysian government, because it would cost a lot of money and they need to hire a professional rescue and search team,” he said.

Song said he believed in the professionalism of Ocean Infinity, a US-based marine robotics company that embarked on a three-month search for the Boeing 777-200ER jet in 2018. He added that professional equipment and experience was needed for the search “and the rest is nonsense”.

On the evening of March 8, 2014, the Malaysia Airlines jet with 239 people on board – including more than 150 Chinese nationals – left Kuala Lumpur for Beijing then vanished from radar screens about two hours after its departure.

Massive search operations involving several countries were conducted in the southern Indian Ocean, but neither the plane nor its wreckage was found.

But the families have never given up hope and the pursuit of the truth.

04:16

Families of MH370 victims call for resumption of search nearly a decade after flight disappearance

Last month, a Beijing court heard claims for compensation for relatives of more than 40 missing passengers against Malaysia Airlines, its insurer, Boeing and the manufacturer of the plane’s engine.

Their demands include compensation, an apology, psychological help as well as a fund to continue the search.

Jiang said he had not yet heard any results from the case and would check with the court again after the holidays.

“Our slogan for the 10th anniversary is still ‘reboot the search’,” he said.

For nearly a decade, Jiang has helped organise families on the social media platform WeChat, talked to the media and pushed for progress in finding the plane. He has even visited search teams in Australia and travelled to Mauritius, Madagascar and Réunion to look for debris.

He has studied plane crashes and mechanical failures, sharing his knowledge on social media and reaching out to the relatives of crash victims.

When China Eastern Airlines flight MU5735 crashed in southern China in March 2022, Jiang called for transparency and counselling for the families via Weibo.