Myanmar navy starts searching operation for missing Malaysian jet

Three Myanmar naval vessels started search and rescue operations within Myanmar waters Saturday for the missing aircraft of the Malaysian Airlines, official sources said Sunday.  [Special coverage]

In cooperation with Indian and Malaysian navies, the three Myanmar naval vessels are carrying out the search in Myanmar's exclusive economic zone in the Gulf of Mottama and the Bay of Bengal.

Myanmar's decision for the search came after Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak announced the end of the more than a week's search in the South China Sea on Saturday.

According to the prime minister, the Malaysian authorities have uncovered new data on the possible flight path of MH370 that point to two new corridors, including a northern corridor stretching approximately from the border of Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan to northern Thailand as well as a southern one stretching from Indonesia to the southern Indian Ocean.

Malaysian Airlines flight MH370, a Boeing 777-200ER with 239 people on board, disappeared shortly after taking off from Kuala Lumpur on early March 8 en route to Beijing.

The plane was carrying 12 crew and 227 passengers, including 154 Chinese.