(VOVworld) - Navy and maritime police ships of Vietnam on Sunday arrived in the waters where the Malaysia Airlines plane Boeing 777-200 ER with 239 people on board was reported missing.
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They began searching for the missing plane in the area at 07.00N – 104.00E and 07.31N – 104.00E, about 120 nautical miles southwest of Vietnam’s Ca Mau cape. There has been no report on the suspected sign of the missing plane. On March 8, Vietnamese rescue forces discovered two possible oil slicks of between 15-20km in length, about 140km south of Vietnam’s Tho Chu island. Deputy Minister of Transport Pham Quy Tieu, who is also deputy head of the National Committee on Search and Rescue, said the oil slicks are ‘unusual’ and rescue forces were verifying the fact. Helicopters equipped with modern military binoculars and cameras took off on March 9 to picture the suspected oil slicks. Vietnamese fishermen in southern Vietnam were informed of the incident, but they have yet to discover or rescue any foreign passengers on board the missing Malaysian plane.
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After 4 hours searching for the missing plane, at 16:20 (March 9th), helicopter Mi 17102 returned to Ca Mau airport. Colonel Tran Van Quang, an official of the Vietnam Anti-aircraft and air defense force said possible traces of the missing plane had not been identified. He added that two helicopters had been searching for the plane but no suspicious sign had been found.
Colonel Quang also said while at sea, they found some objects but not of the missing plane. Concerning the two possible oil slicks reported by the media, Quang said that those slicks are an effect of currents and have the orange color.
At 18:30, helicopter DHC6 reported an object believed to be part of an exit door of the plane. However, as it was dark, the helicopter could not go down but take pictures of the object. The helicopter will return the next morning to identify it.
6 countries have joined search and rescue efforts.