MH370 missing 201403200531

20 Mar 2014 5:31 am GMT

Australia’s maritime search agency are now focusing all of their resources on finding two objects picked up on satellite images that they believe could be related to the missing Malaysia Airlines plane. Here’s the latest summary of events:

• A search is now underway for what Australian authorities believe is a “credible” sighting of two objects that may be from the missing plane. In a press conference on Thursday the general manager of Australia’s maritime safety agency, John Young, said An expert analysis of satellite imagery by Australia’s Geospatial-Intelligence Organisation believes that the images show “a possible indication of debris” that could be from the plane.

• One of the objects is believed to be around 24 metres long.
  An Australian aircraft is now at the scene, and a United States Poseidon vessel is also attending the operation. Two other aircraft, including one from New Zealand, are flying to the location, and a navy vessel is also en-route. Australia has received a number of offers of assistance from other nations to assist in the search operation.

• The possible sighting was believed to be “a promising lead,” according to Air Commodore John McGarry, who was also at the press conference on Thursday. He added that defence officials were working towards releasing some of the satellite images to the public.

• The announcement comes shortly after Australia’s maritime authority said that the search for the missing Malaysia Airlines flight off the coast in Australia had halved in size and moved closer to Perth. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority general manager John Young provided a video update of the search operation on Wednesday, which showed that the initial search zone off Australia - an area of some 600,000 sq km - had been reduced to roughly 300,000 square kilometres and had been moved to 2300 kilometres off the coast of Perth.

Source: The Guardian