The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) published four reports describing oceanographic drift modelling work done in aid of the search for MH370. The first report identified the 36°-32°S segment of the 7th arc (especially the region near 35°S) as being the most likely site of the impact, based on where and when debris was seen and not seen on African and Australian shores and during the initial 40-day aerial search (Fig 1.1). This work was a contribution to the First Principles Review ATSB (2016). The 2nd report documented additional research recommended by…

Geoscience Australia (GA) was asked to assist the ATSB in the analysis of a set of four Airbus PLEIADES 1A images. GA received these images for analysis on 23 March 2017. The data was acquired over the Indian Ocean on 23 March 2014. The analysis performed by GA was to determine whether the images included objects that were potentially man-made in origin. GA analyses included semi-automatic workflows and a number of potential objects were identified. The overall location of the study area is shown in Figure 1 of the report, and a detailed overview of the four scenes with associated detected…

In late January 2022, the ATSB asked Geoscience Australia to undertake a review of certain sonar imagery collected during the original search for MH370, conducted between October 2014 and January 2017.     The review concluded that it is highly unlikely there is an aircraft debris field within the reviewed search area.

Between May 2014 and January 2017 the ATSB led an underwater search for MH370. With the publication of the final report The Operational Search for MH370 on 3 October 2017, the ATSB ceased to have any formal role in searching for the missing aircraft. History of the search On 8 March 2014, Malaysia Airlines flight 370 (MH370), a Boeing 777 carrying 12 crew and 227 passengers (including 7 Australian citizens and residents), was lost during a flight from Kuala…