Hishammuddin optimistic in locating MH370

PERTH: Malaysia is optimistic over the search for the missing Malaysia Airlines (MAS) flight MH370, whose final resting place is believed to be in a remote area in the Indian Ocean.
Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein said he is 99.9% confident with the search mission, based on the latest cutting-edge equipment used.
"I am 99.9% optimistic in locating the missing aircraft but the ocean is huge ... and it all depends on various factors, including the condition of the sea," he said when launching the Malaysian contracted vessel, Go Pheonix, and sophisticated underwater search equipment called ProSAS towed side-scan sonar, at Freemantle Port here today.
Among those present were Communication and Multimedia Deputy Minister Datuk Jailani Johari, Petronas president and chief executive officer Tan Sri Shamsul Azhar Abbas, DRB-HICOM group managing director Tan Sri Mohd Khamil Jamil and Joint Agency Coordination Centre (JACC) chief coordinator Judith Zielke.
Flight MH370, which was carrying 227 passengers and 12 crew members, left KL International Airport at 12.41am on March 8, and disappeared from radar about an hour later while over the South China Sea.
It was to have arrived in Beijing at 6.30am the same day.
The search for the aircraft has been on since.
Hishammuddin expressed his gratitude to the countries involved in the search mission, including Australia and China, and reiterated the Malaysian government's commitment to continue the search without any specific timeline.
At the same event, Petronas vice-president for Malaysia Petroleum Management, Adif Zukifli, said Petronas had provided US$21 million (RM67 million) for the operating costs of the search vessel, complete with crew and underwater search equipment.
"The funds will go to the lease of the search equipment for six months until February 2015," he said.
The vessel is expected to begin its 30-day search mission today at the southern part of the Indian ocean, about 3,000km off Perth with Deftech DRB-HICOM Defence Technologies Sdn Bhd acting as a vendor providing technical services for the vessel.
Meanwhile, Zielke said she would go to Kuala Lumpur for a meeting with Malaysian authorities and international experts involved in the MH370 investigation committee to discuss several matters relating to the missing aircraft probe.
"We are going to discuss Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) procedures if the aircraft is found," she said.
Jailani, who is also the MH370 media committee chairman, expressed concern over media speculation about the missing aircraft and appealed to the media to produce reports based on verified information.
On the downed MAS MH17 investigation, Hishammuddin said Malaysia is committed to quickly resolve the investigation and has no intention to point fingers at anybody over who was responsible for the tragedy until the investigation is completed.
Flight MH17 was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur when it went down in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine near the Russian border on July 17.
The Boeing 777-200 aircraft which was carrying 298 people – 283 passengers and 15 crew – was believed to have been shot down, but until today no one has claimed responsibility for the heinous act. – Bernama