Ocean Infinity has confirmed that the current search for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 is coming to an end but says it hopes to be able to resume it at some time in the future.
The company used new technology that covered in three months a massive swathe of seabed measuring 112,000 sq. km in challenging conditions and over difficult terrain.
This was an area almost as big as the 120,000 sq km covered by the original 2 ½- year headed by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau.
“Part of our motivation for renewing the search was to try to provide some answers to those affected,’’ Ocean Infinity chief executive Oliver Plunkett said in a statement issued Tuesday.
“ It is therefore with a heavy heart that we end our current search without having achieved that aim.”
The company undertook the search on a “no-find, no-fee basis” and the statement did not say how much the effort had cost but observers say it would have been millions.
An agreement with the Malaysian Government meant it stood to be paid up to $US70 million if it had found the wreckage but now it will get nothing.
READ: Malaysia must face up to its responsibilities on MH370.
However, the exercise has showcased the company’s technology of running from high-tech surface vessel the Seabed Constructor a fleet of eight autonomous underwater vehicles at depths at up to 6000 metres.
The free-ranging AUVs were equipped with sophisticated detection gear such as side scan sonar, multibeam echosounders, sub-bottom profilers and high definition cameras.
“Whilst clearly the outcome so far is extremely disappointing, as a company, we are truly proud of what we have achieved both in terms of the quality of data we’ve produced and the speed with which we covered such a vast area,” Plunkett said.
“There simply has not been a subsea search on this scale carried out as efficiently or as effectively ever before.
“We sincerely hope that we will be able to again offer our services in the search for MH370 in future.”
Plunkett also expressed gratitude to the Malaysian government for allowing the company to restart the search.
A commitment by the new Malaysian government to prioritizing finding MH370 “was very good to hear”, he said.
“We want to thank the team onboard Seabed Constructor who have worked tirelessly and all the many companies, organizations and individuals whose support, guidance and advice were invaluable.
“The staff at the ATSB whose dedication to finding the plane has been unwavering deserve our particular gratitude.“
Malaysia’s new Transport Minister Anthony Loke has said finding MH370 would be on of his priorities but he also told Australia’s ABC that it was time to look for closure on the issue.
The latter comment appeared to be contradicted a day later by Malaysia’s Prime Minister-in-waiting, Anwar Ibrahim, who told The Australian he was not ruling out a new search after a full review of the disappearance of the Boeing 777.
Australian Transport Minister Michael McCormack told Sky News Tuesday morning that Australia would not be part of a new search at this stage. Australia spent more than $A60 million funding the initial search with Malaysia contributing the bulk of the cost of almost $A200m
“We’ve got to remember that the actual plane is about 60 metres long,” McCormack said. “That’s about four times less than the Titanic, which they took more than 70 years to find and they knew exactly where the coordinates, exactly where it went down.”
