KUALA LUMPUR, March 28 (Bernama) -- The shift to a fresh search zone for the ill-fated Malaysia Airlines (MAS) Flight MH370 has been described as "nothing unusual as it happens most of the time" for any search and rescue (SAR) operation.
Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) general manager (emergency response division), John Young said new information would emerge at a sequence with the operation itself.
"This is normal business for SAR as new information brings about a lot of profound analyses and takes you to different places.
"I don't count the original work as a waste of time," he told a press briefing in Canberra today, which was televised live by CNN.
Earlier today, AMSA said in a statement that the search area for the missing MH370 aircraft would shift to a location, 1,100km to the north-east based on updated advice provided by the international investigation team in Malaysia.
It said the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB), Australia's investigation agency, had examined this advice and determined that this was the most credible lead to where the debris might be located.
The search for the missing MH370 aicraft shifted to a new northern zone in the Indian Ocean after a credible new lead indicated the aircraft flew faster than previously thought.
Young said the new information was based on the analysis of radar data between the South China Sea and the Melaka Strait, before radar contact was lost.
"It indicated that the aircraft was travelling faster than previously estimated and resulted in increased fuel usage and reduced the possible distance travelled by the aircraft, south into the Indian Ocean.
"We have moved on from (our previous efforts in) searching the areas. Based on the information provided by the international investigation team, it is the most credible lead that we have in the search for the aircraft wreckage. It is now our best place to go," he added.
He said radar and satellite data had been combined with information on the likely performance of the aircraft, speed and fuel consumption in particular, to arrive at the best assessment of the area at which the aircraft was likely to have gone through.
Young stressed that he would not use the term, 'debris field', to associate the 300-odd objects detected by Thailand's satellite as it "may or may not be objects (from the aircraft)."
Five Chinese ships and an Australian naval vessel were also heading to the new zone of interest after the weather cleared, following suspension of the air search yesterday due to thunderstorms and high winds, said AMSA.
MH370, which carried 227 passengers and 12 crew on a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, disappeared from the radar about an hour after departing from the KL International Airport at 12.41am on March 8.
The aircraft was scheduled to land in Beijing at 6.30am (Malaysian time) on the same day.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak then announced on March 24 - 17 days after the disappearance of Flight MH370 - that the aircraft "ended in the southern Indian Ocean."
Source: Top Stories - Google News - http://ift.tt/1g6EvSR
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