Renewed hunt for MH370 ends without findings as families urge Malaysia to continue search
Twelve years after disappearance, 28-day seabed survey covering 7,571 sq km yields no clues to aircraft’s location
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — A renewed deep-sea search for Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 in the southern Indian Ocean has failed to locate the missing aircraft, Malaysian authorities said Sunday, as families marked the 12th anniversary of the plane’s disappearance by urging the government to extend the hunt .
The Air Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) of Malaysia’s Transport Ministry announced that a search conducted by marine robotics company Ocean Infinity between March 2025 and January 2026 surveyed approximately 7,571 square kilometres of seabed but produced no confirmed findings of the aircraft wreckage .
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The Boeing 777 was carrying 227 passengers and 12 crew when it vanished from radar on March 8, 2014, while en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, becoming one of the world’s most enduring aviation mysteries .
Search details and challenges
Malaysia formalised an agreement with Texas-based Ocean Infinity on March 25, 2025, to undertake a search operation covering a new 15,000 sq km area in the southern Indian Ocean where the aircraft is believed to have crashed . The contract operated under a “no find, no fee” principle, with the company to be paid $70 million only if wreckage was successfully located .
The operations were conducted in two phases: March 25 to 28, 2025 (Phase 1) and December 31, 2025 to January 23, 2026 (Phase 2), totalling 28 operational search days . Ocean Infinity indicated that additional survey activities were undertaken within the broader search area before the formal signing of the agreement in March 2025 to support the operation .
The AAIB noted that operations were periodically disrupted by adverse weather and sea conditions, with Phase 2 concluding on January 23, 2026 . “As of this update, the search activities undertaken have not yielded any findings that confirm the location of the aircraft wreckage,” the bureau said in a statement .
The government remains committed to keeping families informed and will continue to provide updates as appropriate, the AAIB added .
Families press for continued search
Voice 370, a group representing families of those aboard the missing plane, urged the government to extend Ocean Infinity’s contract and to consider similar arrangements with other deep-sea exploration companies .
Although Ocean Infinity’s contract runs until June, the group said the company’s vessel has been redeployed for other work and is unlikely to return soon to complete the remaining search areas due to the approaching winter months in the southern hemisphere and deteriorating sea conditions .
“The government pays nothing unless the aircraft is found. Any request by Ocean Infinity to extend the search contract should therefore be granted without hesitation,” the group said in a statement . “If the present search is unsuccessful, we would also urge Malaysia to kindly consider extending similar no find, no fee opportunities to other capable deep sea exploration companies” .
“A simple addendum extending the contract period without altering the core terms of the agreement would allow the search to continue without delay,” Voice 370 added .
The group vowed to “continue the fight for answers. We will never give up!” .
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Background and context
The disappearance of MH370 remains one of aviation’s greatest mysteries. Despite one of the most extensive search operations in aviation history, jointly led by Malaysia, Australia and China, the aircraft was not located within the primary search zone in the southern Indian Ocean .
Satellite data showed the plane turned from its flight path and headed south to the far-southern Indian Ocean, where it is believed to have crashed . Malaysian investigators in a 2018 report drew no conclusion about what happened aboard the flight, but did not rule out the possibility that the aircraft had been deliberately taken off course .
Over the years, several pieces of aircraft debris, confirmed or believed to be from MH370, were discovered along coastlines in the western Indian Ocean, including in Mozambique, Madagascar and Réunion Island . A private search in 2018 by Ocean Infinity also found nothing .
Wider implications
The fruitless search renews focus on the challenges of deep-sea exploration in one of the planet’s most remote regions. The southern Indian Ocean’s extreme depths, unpredictable weather and treacherous sea conditions have repeatedly frustrated efforts to solve the mystery.
For the families of the 239 passengers and crew—mostly Chinese nationals—each unsuccessful search prolongs decades of uncertainty and grief. The 12th anniversary of the disappearance, marked Saturday, brought renewed pain and determination.
The Malaysian government faces mounting pressure to continue the hunt, balancing financial considerations against humanitarian obligations. The “no find, no fee” model offers a low-risk path forward, but questions remain about whether further searches would target new areas or revisit previously scanned zones with advanced technology.
Latest developments
The AAIB’s March 8 statement confirmed that the search has concluded for now, with no immediate plans announced for a third phase. The bureau said the government will continue to provide updates as appropriate .
Ocean Infinity has not publicly commented on whether it will seek a contract extension. The company’s vessel has reportedly been redeployed for other commercial work, and industry observers note that returning to the search zone would require significant logistical coordination and favourable weather windows .
The families’ advocacy continues, with Voice 370 maintaining pressure on Malaysian authorities to extend the search and explore partnerships with other capable deep-sea exploration firms .
Twelve years after MH370 vanished with 239 people aboard, the latest and most technologically advanced search has ended without success. The 28-day, 7,571-square-kilometre seabed survey—conducted under a “no find, no fee” contract with Ocean Infinity—yielded no clues to the aircraft’s final resting place.
For the families who have waited more than a decade for answers, the outcome brings fresh anguish but also renewed determination. Their calls for Malaysia to extend the search, or to invite other companies to try under similar terms, underscore a refusal to let the mystery remain unsolved.
The Malaysian government now faces a difficult choice: accept that the latest effort has failed and close another chapter, or authorise yet another search in the hope that persistence, technology and luck will eventually prevail. For the families, there is only one acceptable answer.
With inputs from
1 BERNAMA: New Search For MH370 In Indian Ocean Yields No Clues – MOT
2 Associated Press via ABC News: Renewed hunt for missing Flight MH370 comes up empty as families press for answers
3 Xinhua: Malaysia’s Transport Ministry announces no findings in latest MH370 search
4 Reuters: Families of flight MH370 passengers urge Malaysia to extend search
5 Media Selangor: Search for MH370 in new Indian Ocean area yields no clues
6 Xinhua via China.org.cn: Malaysia’s Transport Ministry announces no findings in latest MH370 search
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