QUESTIONS remain abound after more than four and half years since flight MH370 disappeared into the night on March 8, 2014.

But while the answers remain elusive, some family members of the passengers were relieved that it was not the “final” report on MH370.

“The investigations team said this is not the final report and for that we are grateful to the investigators,” said Grace Nathan, whose mother Daisy was among one of the 239 passengers and crew on board MH370 that night.

The families however were disappointed that they were not given any answers about the future of any searches for MH370.

She said the families were also concerned that “other” reported debris in Madagascar were uncollected and who would be in charge if new evidence comes up.

“We also would like to know what options are there for any future searches if a ‘No-cure, No-fee’ offer comes along. Because it is still our desire that the search continues and the plane is found,” she added.

She said the families still hope that the government will say that the search is not over and is keen to receive ‘No-cure, No-fee’ offers.

One concern about the report is about the accuracy of some of the information given to the investigation team. 

“The investigations was very limited in their scope as they only investigated based on the information supplied to them,” she added.

One example, she said, pertained the co-pilot’s mobile phone signal that had connected to one of the telecommunications towers at Bandar Baru Farlim in Penang at 1.52am.

The report said the signal ping however did not record any communication except to confirm that it was on. The number was later traced to first officer Fariq Abdul Hamid.

“But when we asked if they tested other mobiles, the investigations team said no,” said Grace.

As for the report, the families are hopeful that the investigation team will continue to press their recommendations to ensure that there will be no repeat of MH370 which went missing during a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.

“At this point in time, we find that there is nothing new that we didn’t know before. The report has highlighted some failings on the part of various government agencies about guidelines and protocols that were not followed,” said the lawyer.

Grace was speaking at a press conference along with several members of Flight MH370 families after attending a briefing by the safety investigations team at the Transport Ministry this morning.

Besides Grace, the press conference was also attended by Jaquita Gonzales, Intan Maizurah Othaman, KS Narendran, Nor Azlinda Ayu and several others.

The safety investigations team, led by Kok Soo Chon, presented its full report today. Among the highlights were the failings of the Kuala Lumpur Air Traffic Control (ATC) and Ho Chih Minh ATC that delayed the search for MH370.

It also made some 19 safety recommendations to the ATCs, Malaysia Airlines Berhad, Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad and the International Civil Aviation Organisation. – July 30, 2018.