The Malaysian government says another search for the wreckage of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 has turned up empty.
The Malaysian Aviation Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) said in a statement that ocean robotics company Ocean Infinity had conducted two phases of investigations from March 25 to 28 last year and from December 31, 2025 to January 23, 2026, but the investigation was periodically disrupted due to bad weather and sea conditions.
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This search was in “If not found, no charge” agreement Taking place in 2025 between Malaysia and Ocean Infinity.
“After the signing of the agreement, a total of 28 operational search days were conducted in both phases, and approximately 7,571 square kilometers of seafloor were surveyed within the specified search area,” the AAIB statement read.
“Ocean Infinity said additional investigative activities were carried out within the wider search area to support the search operations before the agreement was formally signed in March 2025.
“As of this update, search activities conducted have not yielded any results confirming the location of the wreckage.”
Ocean Infinity is Searches before 2018It lasted from January to June, but ended with no results. The latest search area covers areas of the seabed not covered by previous missions, including those conducted by ATSB.
Based on the deepwater support vessel Armada 7806, the Ocean Infinity team deployed an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) to scan the seafloor for traces of the missing 777-200ER. The plane disappeared in March 2014 after a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing veered off course.
Ocean Infinity CEO Oliver Plunkett said in a press release that it was important for the company to “use every piece of information and data available and come back,” but he also confirmed that the company was not successful on its latest expedition.
“The scale of the geographic and technological challenges is almost beyond comprehension. We are proud to bring our expertise and the most advanced technologies we have deployed,” he said.
“The combination of scientific rigor, automation, robotics and deep organizational experience meant that 2018 achieved unimaginable levels of search precision and speed.
“I want those around the world who are interested in this to know that even though we didn't get the results we wanted, a lot of people tried their best.”
According to Plunkett, the company has spent more than 150 days at sea since 2018, covering more than 140,000 square kilometers of seafloor.
“We are extremely grateful for the support from these families, the Malaysian Government, the Australian Government and the many companies and individuals who have invested their time and effort because they care and want to help.
“If nothing else, we can say with confidence that this is not what we are seeing. This is important – it brings clarity and will help those who continue to study the evidence refine their thinking and develop future search strategies.
“While this phase of the search is over, our commitment is not. We are continuing to work with the Malaysian government and hope to be able to return when circumstances permit.”
Voice 370, an organization representing surviving families of MH370 victims, urged the Malaysian government in a statement not to abandon the search.
“The government will not pay anything unless the aircraft is found. Therefore, any request by Ocean Unlimited to extend the search contract should be approved without hesitation,” the group said.
“We also urge Malaysia to consider offering similar discovery-free, no-fee opportunities to other capable deep-sea exploration companies if the current search is unsuccessful.”
Ocean Infinity's contract runs until June, but the search vessel has reportedly Redeploy to other jobs and is unlikely to return to the survey area anytime soon.
