THE government may terminate the services of a private company engaged to find missing flight MH370 if they are not found to be “useful”. 

“We want to know the details of this (search), the necessity of it, and if we find it is not necessary, we will not renew,” said Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad after chairing the first Pakatan Harapan cabinet meeting today. 

“We are reviewing the contract and we need to terminate it if not useful,.

Houston-based Ocean Infinity was engaged in January on a “no find, no pay” basis to continue the search for MH370 in the southern Indian Ocean. It will be paid up to US$70 million (RM280 million) if it locates the wreckage or the flight recorders of the missing Boeing 777-200ER within 90 days. The search is scheduled to end next month. 

Flight MH370, carrying 239 people, disappeared en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on March 8, 2014. 

Since 2014, Australia, China and Malaysia have spent some A$200 million searching for the plane in the southern Indian Ocean. A search was called off last January after 1,046 days. 

Meanwhile, Australian investigators have rejected suggestions MH370 was deliberately brought down by the pilot, Capt Zaharie Ahmad Shah. 

The theory of the jet being “controlled ditched” into the sea was dismissed yesterday by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau. 

ATSB said it was likely the pilot was unconscious in the final moments and the plane was out of control when it plunged into the sea. – May 23, 2018.