©The Star (Used by permission)
by NEVILLE SPYKERMAN, RAZAK AHMAD, NICHOLAS CHENG, RASHVINJEET S. BEDI, LOSHANA K.SHAGAR, T.AVINESHWARAN, WANI MUTHIAH, DESIREE TRESA GASPER, THO XIN YI, ADRIAN CHAN, AND HANIS ZAINAL
PETALING JAYA: The families of those onboard Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 can move forward to seek compensation now that the aircraft’s disappearance has been officially declared as an accident with all 239 passengers and crew presumed dead.
Department of Civil Aviation director–general Datuk Azharuddin Abdul Rahman, who announced this yesterday on behalf of the Government, acknowledged that such a declaration would be very difficult for the families to accept.
However, Azharuddin gave the commitment that the declaration did not signal an end to the search for the missing aircraft, which would remain a priority.
“Without in any way intending to diminish the feelings of the families, it is hoped that this declaration will enable the families to obtain the assistance they need, in particular through the compensation process,” said Azharuddin in a statement which he read out and was broadcast live on RTM1.
The Boeing 777–200 aircraft was on a scheduled flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on March 8 last year when it disappeared from the radar 40 minutes after taking off.
Azharuddin said the declaration that the disappearance of MH370 was an accident and all passengers and crew were presumed to have lost their lives was made in accordance with provisions contained in Annex 12 and Annex 13 to the Convention on International Civil Aviation.
An analysis of all available evidence and the supporting factual information obtained supported the conclusion that MH370 ended its flight in the southern Indian Ocean where it exhausted its fuel, he said.
“After 327 days (as of Jan 28) and based on all available data as well as circumstances mentioned earlier, survivability in the defined area is highly unlikely.
“It is, therefore, with the heaviest heart and deepest sorrow that, on behalf of the Government of Malaysia, we officially declare Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 an accident in accordance with the Standards of Annexes 12 and 13 that all 239 of the passengers and crew onboard MH370 are presumed to have lost their lives.”
Azharuddin assured the next of kin that Malaysia Airlines would undertake its responsibilities in relation to the legitimate rights and interests of the next of kin as provided under the relevant international instruments and relevant domestic laws, with due consideration to international practice.
“This includes the fulfilment of the compensation process, whether it is pursued through consultation or through litigation.”
Azharuddin said an initial “search and rescue” operation was carried out from March 8 to April 28 last year.
The Australian government, which was subsequently tasked with coordinating the search efforts on April 28, announced that the search and rescue phase had transitioned to a search and recovery operation.
This current phase of the search included the use of the Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) and a bathymetry survey or underwater search which has so far completed covering about 208,000km² of the sea floor.
“We have never wavered in our commitment to continue our efforts to find MH370 and bring closure for everyone, most of all for the families of the passengers and crew of MH370,” said Azharuddin.
The National Registration Department will discuss with the Attorney–General’s Chambers on the procedures to issue the death certificates for MH370 passengers and crew.
Its director–general Datuk Sulaiman Keling said the discussion would focus on the legal aspects to make the process easier.
Australian authorities leading the search for MH370 in the southern Indian Ocean expect operations to wrap up by May.
The Australian Joint Agency Coordination Centre (JACC) said this would be the timeline, barring any significant delays in logistics or from bad weather.
JACC also expects weather conditions to be generally favourable until the end of February.
“To date, around 18,000km² of seafloor have been searched, which is around 30% of the priority search area,” said JACC in its update on Wednesday.
JACC said the underwater search aimed to also map the MH370 debris field in order to identify and prioritise the recovery of specific aircraft components, including flight data recorders, which will be crucial for investigations.
A fourth ship, Fugro Supporter, has just arrived and will join in the search with the Fugro Equator, Fugro Discovery and GO Phoenix.