PROBE UPDATES TO BE RELEASED TODAY
Televised broadcast of statement on RTM at 3.30pm
THE Malaysian International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) will release an update on the investigations involving the missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 today, marking the fourth anniversary of the tragedy.
Transport Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said the team chief investigator Datuk Kok Soo Chon would release the statement via a televised broadcast on Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM) 1 at 3.30pm.
The annual statement, which is released on the anniversary of the tragedy, would outline the details and updates of the investigations carried out from year to year.
“The statement will also be uploaded onto the official MH370 website (www.mh370.gov.my), where it will first be made available to the next of kin only, and subsequently made public at 3pm Malaysian time,” he said.
On March 8, 2014, Flight MH370 dropped off the radar shortly after taking off from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. This sparked a massive search in the southern Indian Ocean, which ended in January last year.
“The date will always be in our memory. It has undoubtedly been a difficult and trying 48 months for the families and loved ones of the passengers and crew of Flight MH370.
“Four years may have passed, but the memories of the passengers and crew will always be with us. They will be remembered dearly, not only by their families, but also by Malaysians and the world,” Liow said in a statement, yesterday.
He said the Malaysian government was committed to the search when it agreed to allow a United States exploration firm to resume the hunt for the plane, a year after the search was suspended.
The search started on Jan 19 on a “no cure, no fee” basis, within a 90-day time frame.
“The mission involves 65 crew members, including two personnel from the Royal Malaysian Navy as the government’s representative.
“The vessel, Seabed Constructor, has covered more than 16,000sq km of the 25,000sq km most probable area.
“Our commitment to the families and Malaysians remains steadfast as we continue the search mission to find the answers,” he said.