Malaysia has no plans to call off MH370 search

KUALA LUMPUR: The search for missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 will not be called off, said Transport Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai (pix).
He said the multi-national search effort is committed to cover the targeted 120,000sq km area in the southern Indian Ocean, before any decision to call off the search could be made.
However, bad weather conditions in the search ground is hampering the effort, Liow said, adding that the search could be postponed until October.
"No, we will not call off the search for flight MH370. We will continue to complete the 120,000sq km search which we have committed to.
"So far the search effort has managed to cover an area of 107,000sq km. There is still a lot of ground that we have to cover," he told reporters after the launching of iWALK at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 (KLIA2).
Flight MH370 disappeared in March 2014 with 239 passengers and crew on board shortly after taking off from Kuala Lumpur bound for Beijing.
Liow said the Malaysian government will be calling a tripartite ministerial meeting on July 19 with its search partners China and Australia.
"We have to sit down and discuss how we should proceed from now in completing the 120,000sq km search area.
"We will discuss details of the search and make an announcement to the public on the way forward," he added.
Meanwhile, Liow urged those intending to travel not to panic following the recent terror attack at the Istanbul Ataturk Airport in Turkey.
He said the security level at all airports nationwide has been maintained on high alert since a similar attack at the Brussels Airport in Belgium, three months ago.