Malaysia Airlines Search Shifts Gears

Australian Maritime Authority General Manager of Emergency Response John Young declared, "We have moved on from those search areas". As of today, the new search territory is 680 million northeast of the previous one.

Five of the ten search planes sent out in the new region have identified objects floating in the ocean. The authority stated, "The objects cannot be verified or discounted as being from MH370 until they are relocated and recovered by ships".

This marks three weeks of false hope in the quest for the plane's whereabouts. It vanished with 239 people traveling on March 8th. Authorities have confirmed that previous images were not of an aircraft. The new search region is about 123,000 square miles and in a remote area 1,150 miles west of Perth. The area is closer to the continent, allowing for planes to have more time in the actual air.

Air experts and flight crews aren't frustrated at the new search efforts as they are trained for these type of abrupt alterations in hunts. However, certain analysts are skeptical at the sudden deviation. Wood Hole Oceanographic Institution Official David Gallo remarked, "Really? That much debris and we're not going to have a look at it to see what that stuff might be?". CNN Aviation Analyst Miles O'Brien commented, "This is time that has been wasted, there's no question". Malaysian Officials have disputed the disbelieving thoughts.

The ever-changing quest for the missing airplane has extended over continents and oceans, starting in the South China Sea. Many relatives of the missing are still holding out hope that their loved ones will be found alive.