Malaysian officials have confirmed missing flight MH370 has not been found after a second week of searching, but questions persist about a three-day period during which the designated search ship disappeared from satellite tracking.
On Tuesday the Malaysian government released its second weekly update in the renewed search, which confirmed no contact had been made with the wreck of the plane.
But officials said nothing about a three-day period between 1 and 4 February when the search ship turned off its satellite tracking without explanation, sparking confusion and conspiracy theories.
The new search began on 22 January after the US-based company Ocean Infinity was hired by the Malaysian government to find the missing plane, which disappeared in March 2014.
After 10 days, Ocean Infinity’s search ship, Seabed Constructor, abruptly turned off its Automatic Identification System (AIS). Three days later it reappeared on course for a scheduled stop at the Australian port of Fremantle.
Tuesday’s report, which covered the dates of the disappearance, made no mention of the AIS outage. Neither the Malaysian government nor Ocean Infinity have offered an explanation.
The report said the Seabed Constructor had identified two points of interest that were later classified as geological.
KS Narendran, who had a relative on MH370, called for greater transparency over the ship’s temporary disappearance.
“I found the development quite odd, and worrying,” he said. “If this silence and becoming invisible was intentional, to ward off suspicion, a satisfactory explanation is due. If it was for other reasons, then in the interests of transparency, we ought to be told what caused it.”
The three-day data blackout sparked speculation online, including a conspiracy theory that Seabed Constructor had taken a detour to recover sunken treasure.
Other observers suggested the tracker may have malfunctioned, or been turned off while examining the two geological points of interest to prevent speculation that the plane had been found.
The Guardian contacted the Malaysian government and Ocean Infinity but did not receive a response.
Seabed Constructor is scheduled to leave Fremantle and return to the search area on 12 February.
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