Missing Malaysia Airlines plane ‘a mystery’
Kuala Lumpur: More than 10 nations have joined the multinational efforts in search for a Malaysian Airlines jetliner missing from Saturday morning on its way to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur.
Malaysian Airlines Flight MH370, a Boeing 777-200ER carrying 227 passengers and 12 crew members, vanished over the South China Sea.
More than 34 aircraft and 40 ships are in search of the missing plane. The U.S. Navy, Chinese rescue vessel, ships and aircrafts from Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia and other countries have joined the search and rescue mission.
According to Malaysia Airlines, among the 227 passengers on board the missing plane, there were 154 Chinese, 38 Malaysians, seven Indonesians, six Australians, five Indians, four French and three Americans.
Meanwhile, Malaysian civilian aviation chief Azharuddin Abdul Rahman has said disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 remains “a mystery”.
High jacking has not been ruled out with two passengers believe to be travelling on stolen passports.
Relatives of the missing passengers have been told by the authorities to prepare for the worst.
Flight MH730 left Kuala Lumpur for Beijing at 00:41 local time on Saturday (16:41 GMT on Friday). But radio contact was lost at 17:30 GMT, somewhere between Malaysia and Vietnam.
Late on Sunday, the Vietnamese authorities said two objects had been sighted in waters south of Vietnam which appeared to resemble aircraft parts, including a door.It was in a similar area to a possible oil slick seen by Vietnamese navy planes on Saturday.
But the Malaysian authorities said on Monday that this sighting had never been officially verified and could not be confirmed. – Agencies
