Malaysian officials have flagged June as the likely end date for the search of Malaysia Airline’s missing MH370 flight.
The current mission, in partnership with a Texas-based company and their ship Ocean Infinity, will finish their 90-day search in mid-June.
Malaysia signed a “no cure, no fee” deal with Ocean Infinity in January.
Civil aviation chief of Malaysia Azharuddin Abdul Rahman said the 90-day search will be spread over a few months due to the time it takes to refuel the vessel during the mission.
Azharuddin said the search is going smoothly and is expected to end by mid-June.
Speaking at a remembrance event held at a shopping centre in Kuala Lumpur, Azharuddin said: “The whole world, including the next of kin, have (new) hope to find the plane for closure.
“For the aviation world, we want to know what exactly happened to the plane,” he added.
At the time of the original agreement, Ocean Infinity spokesman Mark Antelme said the company was proud to be helping the mission.
“The terms of the offer are confidential, but I can confirm that Ocean Infinity have offered to take on the economic risk of a renewed search,” Antelme said.
“We’re in a constructive dialogue with the relevant authorities and are hopeful that the offer will be accepted.’
In January, new revelations came to light when a reassessment of the possible crash site was widened.
While investigators were originally looking at an area off the coast of Western Australia, having found a small towel with Malaysian Airline’s packaging 2015, their sights changed to an area closer to Africa.
According to ABC News, at the time of the crash, the plane would have activated one of five possible autopilot control modes, each meaning the plane would’ve been lead in a different direction.
As a result, investigators began using these five different control modes as a springboard for new calculations about the crash zone.
The results point at locations further south, roughly 36-39 degrees, and further north, between 33-34 degrees.
As per ABC, ocean currents were running in an easterly direction immediately after the crash, so it should’ve been expected that some form of debris would arrive on Australian shores.
’MH370 originally went missing 8 March 2014 with 239 people on board, while flying from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.
The Australian lead search was called off in January of last year.
The search was the largest in aircraft history and included Australian, Chinese and Malaysian authorities.
It cost roughly $200 million to fund.
