Malaysia Authorizes Ocean Infinity To Resume MH370 Deep-Sea Search
Image: СБ. Беларусь сегодня

Malaysia Authorizes Ocean Infinity To Resume MH370 Deep-Sea Search

03 December, 2025.Asia.68 sources

Key Takeaways

  • Deep-sea search will restart on December 30, 2025.
  • Malaysia will pay Ocean Infinity $70 million only if wreckage is found.
  • Search will target high-probability zones in the southern Indian Ocean over 55 intermittent days.

MH370 search restart

U.S. marine robotics firm Ocean Infinity will lead intermittent seabed operations over a total of 55 days in a targeted 15,000 sq km area.

Image from 9News.au
9News.au9News.au

The government framed the operation as an effort to provide closure to victims’ families.

Ocean Infinity is operating on a 'no-find, no-fee' contract that would pay the company up to about $70 million only if substantive wreckage is recovered.

The restart follows an earlier 2025 attempt that was suspended in April because of bad weather.

It draws on satellite and drift modelling that point investigators to a southern Indian Ocean priority zone.

Search operation details

Malaysian authorities released operational details saying the hunt will target a newly assessed 15,000 sq km zone in the southern Indian Ocean deemed most likely to contain the wreckage.

Ocean Infinity will operate intermittently for up to 55 days, deploying its marine-robotics systems across the prioritized area.

Image from abc.net.au
abc.net.auabc.net.au

The transport ministry and media said precise coordinates were not disclosed publicly.

Reports also noted a 'no-find, no-fee' contract with payment contingent on recovery, and published sums varied slightly between outlets in USD, GBP or AUD.

MH370 search summary

The Australia-led search from 2014 to 2017 scanned roughly 120,000 sq km but yielded only limited debris.

The 2018 Ocean Infinity mission also found nothing substantial.

Official investigative work, including a 2018 Malaysian report, concluded satellite data show the jet turned south into the far southern Indian Ocean.

Investigators said the controls were likely manually manipulated, but they did not reach a definitive cause and did not rule out third-party interference.

Search technology and scrutiny

Ocean Infinity and some reports say the company has refined its technology and analysis since its 2018 search.

They cite improved autonomous underwater vehicles, higher-resolution sonar, AI-enhanced seabed mapping, and collaborations with experts to narrow a priority area.

Image from airlive
airliveairlive

Other outlets caution that despite these claims, it remains unclear whether any new physical evidence points to the newly targeted site.

Several reports note that Australia has offered technical assistance and that Australian authorities will review seabed imagery if potential debris is identified.

Responses to search restart

Reactions ranged from cautious hope among relatives to pragmatic notes about jurisdiction and the limits of what a seabed search can prove.

Malaysia’s Transport Ministry said a new search for missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 will resume on December 30

Al JazeeraAl Jazeera

Malaysian officials and many regional outlets framed the restart as a gesture of commitment to victims' families, while Western mainstream reporting underscored the enduring mystery and the need for recovered wreckage to reach definitive conclusions.

Image from Al Jazeera
Al JazeeraAl Jazeera

Several pieces also mention that relatives have pursued compensation from manufacturers and insurers, and that finding the main wreckage remains essential to resolving what actually happened on March 8, 2014.

More on Asia