Satellite images narrow MH370’s crash zone

New evidence has narrowed the likely MH370 crash site to two areas on the edge of the original search zone.

Families of passengers on lost Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 have demanded a resumption of the search for the jet after startling evidence released yesterday narrowed the likely crash site of the aircraft to two areas on the edge of the original search zone.

Four satellite images taken two weeks after the plane and its 239 passengers and crew went missing in March 2014 have been re-examined, prompting Geo­science Australia and the CSIRO to home in on two narrow strips, no larger than 10km-30km each, to the east and west of the original search site.

Their report places the most likely location of the aircraft “with unprecedented precision and certainty” at 35.6°S, 92.8°E — in the Indian Ocean, findings that are considered more precise than any previous analysis.

The Australian and Malaysian governments said last night the images did not constitute evidence that would prompt ­resumption of the search, which was abandoned after covering 120,000sq km of ocean at a cost of $200 million, $60m of which Australia contributed.

Byron Bailey, a former senior captain with Emirates who now flies private jets, said the ­Australian government and the ATSB should be “ashamed of themselves”. “What I can’t ­understand is why it has taken 3½ years before a French satellite’s images prompted action by the ATSB.”

He said he expected the plane would be largely intact and that the captain had had enough fuel to perform a controlled landing above a very deep sea trench.

The satellite images, released yesterday by the ATSB, contain up to 70 objects, of which up to 12 were “possibly man-made”, ­according to Geoscience Australia. Their dimensions match some of the plane debris that washed up on African beaches last year.

The images were acquired with the help of French authorities, taken in the southern Indian Ocean within a 25,000sq km area on the periphery of the original search area.

Victorian Jennifer Chong, whose husband Chong Ling Tan was onboard MH370, said yesterday she and other families of MH370 victims would be calling on both the Malaysian and Australian governments to re-­establish a search.

“This certainly warrants a new search,” Ms Chong said. “I think it is really interesting that they’ve only discovered this now, three years after, even though the ­images were taken shortly after the incident. My first response is anger because they’ve had these images for such a long time.”

Ms Chong added she was grateful the incident was still being investigated, even after the underwater search was abandoned in January.

Geoscience Australia received the images from the ATSB for analysis on March 23 and considers 12 objects to be man-made, and 28 possibly man-made.

An ATSB spokesman said this satellite imagery reanalysis was part of a systematic process of ­review that commenced last year.

Infrastructure Minister Darren Chester said he welcomed the new reports, but added it was important to note they did “not provide new evidence leading to a specific location of MH370”.

“Malaysia is the lead investigator and any future requests in relation to searching for MH370 would be considered by Australia at that time,” Mr Chester said.

Malaysian Transport Minister Dato Sri Liow Tiong said the newly defined area was not enough to go on and it was hoped debris-drift modelling would help narrow the location further.

Investigators have known for two years that the plane crashed somewhere along a line known as the seventh arc, to the west of Western Australia.

According to the CSIRO drift report, the new debris was located near the seventh arc, which made it “impossible to ignore”.

The plane would “most likely” be located in two narrow (10km-30km) strips east and west of the completed search area.

ATSB chief commissioner Greg Hood urged caution on the new findings. “These objects have not been definitely identified as MH370 debris,” Mr Hood said. “Geoscience Australia identified a number of objects in the satellite imagery which have been classified as probably man-made. The image resolution is not high enough to be certain whether the objects originated from MH370 or are other objects that might be found floating in oceans around the world.”

The images, taken by a French Military satellite, show apparent debris that was disregarded by governments and authorities in late March 2014 — before the ATSB became involved in the search. CSIRO oceanographer David Griffin said this was because countless other photos of debris uncovered at the time led to fruitless searches.