Over 80% of focused underwater search area completed: JACC

Bluefin-21 robot sub is currently completing mission ten in the underwater search area and has now completed more than 80 percent of the focused underwater search area with nothing found, the Joint Agency Coordination Center (JACC) confirmed on Wednesday.[Special coverage]

"Bluefin-21 has now completed more than 80 percent of the focused underwater search area. No contacts of interest have been found to date," the JACC said.

The focused underwater search area is defined as a circle of 10 km radius around the second Towed Pinger Locator detection which occurred on April 8.

In addition, 10 military aircraft and 12 ships will assist in Wednesday's search for missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority has planned a visual search area totaling approximately 37,948 square kilometres. The centre of the search area lies approximately 855 kilometres northwest of Perth.

"Prevailing weather conditions may affect today's air search," the JACC said.

On Tuesday, planned air search activities were suspended due to poor weather conditions in the search area as a result of Tropical Cyclone Jack.

According to the JACC, the weather forecast for Wednesday is for isolated showers increasing to heavy rain, widespread low cloud, with south easterly winds, sea swells up to 2.5 metres and visibility of one kilometere.

MH370 with 239 people on board went missing on March 8 on the way to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur.