Australia Checking Possible Debris From Missing Malaysia Jet
BANGKOK — An apparent breakthrough in the 12-day search for Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 came Thursday when Australian authorities said satellite imagery had located unidentified debris some 2,500 kilometers southwest of Perth, in the Indian Ocean. Australia sent search planes and ships to the region to try to confirm the finding.
Norwegian car carrier Hoegh St. Petersburg was the first to reach the area in the southern Indian Ocean at 0800 GMT the Norwegian shipping association told Reuters.
The car carrier was on its way from Madagascar to Melbourne when it got a request from Australian authorities to assist in investigating the objects spotted by satellite four days ago in one of the remotest parts of the globe, around 2,500 km (1,500 miles) southwest of Perth.
Earlier Thursday Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott told the parliament "new and credible" information had come to light in the search for the Malaysian Boeing 777 that disappeared on March 9 bound for Beijing with 239 passengers and crew.
"The Australian maritime safety authority has received information based on satellite imagery of objects possibly related to the search. Following analysis of this satellite imagery two possible objects related to the search have been identified," said Abbott.
Abbott told Parliament a Royal Australian Air Force Orion aircraft had been diverted in an attempt to locate other objects.
In a news conference a short while later, John Young, the general manager of Australia's maritime authority, said the larger of the objects is roughly 24 meters long.
“The objects are relatively indistinct on the imagery. I don't profess to be an expert in assessing the imagery. But those who are expert indicate they are credible sightings. The indication to me is of objects that are a reasonable size and probably awash with water bobbing up and down under the surface,” said Young.
Young said the satellite imagery is not clear enough to determine if there are markings or features that would confirm if they are from the missing passenger jet. The objects were spotted in a part of the ocean that authorities estimate is several thousand meters deep.
Authorities are scrambling four search aircraft from Australia, New Zealand and the United States that have maritime radar appropriate for locating the objects spotted by the satellites.
Although the weather in the area is moderate, officials say visibility is not ideal, which could hamper search efforts. Authorities are also sending a C130 Hercules plane that will drop data marker buoys to track water currents and trace where the debris could be moving.
Young was cautious not to raise expectations until the findings can be confirmed.
“We have been in this business of doing search and rescue and using satellite images before and they do not always turn out to be related to the search even if they look good. So we will hold our views on that until they have been sighted close up,” said Young.
Authorities were noncommittal about when that confirmation could come, but said the first of the four search planes are already on the scene and others are expected to arrive in the coming hours. More than 25 countries have been involved in the search for the missing aircraft.
Investigators believe someone with advanced knowledge of aircraft deliberately diverted the plane either south toward the Indian Ocean or north toward Central Asia. They have refused to rule out any possibility, including terrorism, pilot suicide, or a mechanical malfunction.
U.S. President Barack Obama on Wednesday said the search is a "top priority" for the United States. He told an American television station that he has put every available resource into the effort.
Flight MH370 Timeline
Norwegian car carrier Hoegh St. Petersburg was the first to reach the area in the southern Indian Ocean at 0800 GMT the Norwegian shipping association told Reuters.
The car carrier was on its way from Madagascar to Melbourne when it got a request from Australian authorities to assist in investigating the objects spotted by satellite four days ago in one of the remotest parts of the globe, around 2,500 km (1,500 miles) southwest of Perth.
Earlier Thursday Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott told the parliament "new and credible" information had come to light in the search for the Malaysian Boeing 777 that disappeared on March 9 bound for Beijing with 239 passengers and crew.
"The Australian maritime safety authority has received information based on satellite imagery of objects possibly related to the search. Following analysis of this satellite imagery two possible objects related to the search have been identified," said Abbott.
Abbott told Parliament a Royal Australian Air Force Orion aircraft had been diverted in an attempt to locate other objects.
In a news conference a short while later, John Young, the general manager of Australia's maritime authority, said the larger of the objects is roughly 24 meters long.
“The objects are relatively indistinct on the imagery. I don't profess to be an expert in assessing the imagery. But those who are expert indicate they are credible sightings. The indication to me is of objects that are a reasonable size and probably awash with water bobbing up and down under the surface,” said Young.
Young said the satellite imagery is not clear enough to determine if there are markings or features that would confirm if they are from the missing passenger jet. The objects were spotted in a part of the ocean that authorities estimate is several thousand meters deep.
Authorities are scrambling four search aircraft from Australia, New Zealand and the United States that have maritime radar appropriate for locating the objects spotted by the satellites.
Although the weather in the area is moderate, officials say visibility is not ideal, which could hamper search efforts. Authorities are also sending a C130 Hercules plane that will drop data marker buoys to track water currents and trace where the debris could be moving.
Young was cautious not to raise expectations until the findings can be confirmed.
“We have been in this business of doing search and rescue and using satellite images before and they do not always turn out to be related to the search even if they look good. So we will hold our views on that until they have been sighted close up,” said Young.
Authorities were noncommittal about when that confirmation could come, but said the first of the four search planes are already on the scene and others are expected to arrive in the coming hours. More than 25 countries have been involved in the search for the missing aircraft.
Investigators believe someone with advanced knowledge of aircraft deliberately diverted the plane either south toward the Indian Ocean or north toward Central Asia. They have refused to rule out any possibility, including terrorism, pilot suicide, or a mechanical malfunction.
U.S. President Barack Obama on Wednesday said the search is a "top priority" for the United States. He told an American television station that he has put every available resource into the effort.
Flight MH370 Timeline
- Mar. 8: Departs Kuala Lumpur at 12:41am local time for Beijing
Air traffic controllers lose contact with the plane around 1:30am
Vietnam launches search operation, two oil slicks are spotted but are not related to plane
- Mar. 9: Malaysia suggests plane may have strayed off course
Debris spotted off Vietnam, but it is not from the airplane
- Mar. 10: Search radius expanded, as China urges Malaysia to speed up investigation
- Mar. 11: Search extended to western side of Malaysian peninsula
- Mar. 12: Chinese satellite images of possible debris are released and determined not to be related to the plane
- Mar. 13: Malaysia rejects Wall Street Journal report that MH370 flew for four hours after its last known contact
- Mar. 14: Search now includes South China Sea, Malacca Strait and Indian Ocean
Media reports say MH370 communications system continued to ping a satellite hours after plane disappeared
- Mar. 15: Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak says someone on MH370 likely turned off its communications systems
- Mar. 17: 26 countries now involved in the search
- Mar. 19: FBI analyzes flight simulator data from the home of the MH370 pilot
- Mar. 20: Australian aircraft investigate possible debris in a remote area of the southern Indian Ocean
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