Discover the Fugro-Discovery: Ratings & Maritime News

In a significant development in the ongoing search for Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, one of the three dedicated vessels, Fugro Discovery, is set to conclude its search efforts. According to a statement from the Joint Agency Coordination Centre (JACC), the vessel will leave the search area on August 11, 2023, to head to Singapore for preparation of its next assignment, which is not related to the MH370 investigation. This decision comes amidst indications that the search operations may soon be suspended. With Fugro Discovery's departure, only two vessels remain in the search area: Fugro Equator, which continues its operations, and Dong Hai Jiu 101, which made a scheduled port call in Fremantle on August 8, 2023. The ongoing search for the missing Boeing 777-200, with the IMO number associated with the incident, remains a critical focus for investigators and families alike.

In a significant update in the ongoing search for the elusive Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, the Fugro Discovery is set to reinitiate its search efforts on Thursday, contingent upon weather conditions. This announcement comes following challenges faced during the reinstallation of its towed sonar vehicle, known as 'towfish'. The Australian Government's Joint Agency Coordination Centre confirmed today that the Fugro Discovery, which has recently departed from Port Fremantle post-inspection, will be operating alongside other search vessels, including the Fugro Equator and the Havila Harmony. The towfish had previously been lost due to a collision with a 2,200-metre high mud volcano on January 25, leading to a cable breakage that left the towfish and its 4.5 km cable at the ocean floor. Fortunately, the Havila Harmony managed to retrieve the vehicle, which allowed for the installation of a new cable on the Fugro Discovery. Adding to the search efforts, the Dong Hai Jiu 101 is anticipated to arrive at the search site on Thursday after its departure from Port Fremantle. So far, more than 85,000 square kilometers of the designated 120,000 square kilometers search area have been thoroughly scanned. This extensive search operation is aimed at solving the mystery surrounding the disappearance of the Malaysia Airlines flight, which vanished from radar screens on March 8, 2014, while traveling from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 individuals onboard. It is widely believed that the aircraft’s final trajectory concluded in the remote southern Indian Ocean.

The vessel 'Fugro Discovery' faced an unexpected setback on January 23, 2016, while conducting search operations for the missing MH370 flight. During its mission, the towfish sonar apparatus encountered an underwater volcano, leading to a mishap that caused the device and its accompanying 4500-meter cable to disconnect and sink into the depths of the Indian Ocean. At a depth of approximately 2200 meters, both the sonar equipment and the cable remain at the ocean floor. The ship was on its way back to Fremantle, with an estimated arrival date of January 29, 2016, when this incident occurred.