Malaysia Seeks India's Help In Search For Missing Airliner

The search for the missing Malaysia Airlines (MASM.KL) plane has now widened to cover a swathe of Southeast Asia, from the South China Sea to India's territorial waters, with authorities no closer to explaining what happened to the plane or the 239 people on board.Earlier Malaysia's military radar had detected what could have been the missing jetliner missing in an area in the northern Malacca Strait, hundreds of miles from the spot where the plane dropped off air traffic screens, the Malaysian air force chief, Rodzali Daud, said on Wednesday.

The spokesperson of India's foreign ministry, Syed Akbaruddin, said help would be provided to Malaysia and to the families of Indian nationals onboard the plane.

"Our officials are in touch and are working out the modalities of what is requested fromMalaysia and what we can offer in terms of the request. At this stage, this process is underway and we hope to be able to tell you a little bit once this process is completed. On the other hand, our mission in Malaysia is also providing assistance to the families of those Indian nationals who have come there," said Akbaruddin in New Delhi.

New Delhi's coastguard planes have now joined the search.

The spokesperson of India's foreign ministry said it had not yet been decided what areaIndia would search in.

India has a large military command in its Andaman and Nicobar Islands and its navypatrols in the straits of Malacca.

A massive search operation involving 42 ships and 39 aircraft has failed to locate any trace of the aircraft missing since Saturday (March 08).

The confusion over where to look is adding to one of the most baffling mysteries in modern aviation history, and prolonging the agonising wait for hundreds of relatives of the missing.

About two-thirds of the 227 passengers and 12 crew members were Chinese.

The other nationalities included 38 Malaysians, seven Indonesians, six Australians, five Indians, four French and three Americans.

One of the Indians on board the plane was a resident of southern city of Chennai,Chandrika Sharma.

Uncertain about the fate of his wife Chandrika Sharma, her husband K.S. Narendranblamed India's federal government and the Malaysian Airlines for its insensitive and careless response.

"Malaysia Airlines has been in touch to facilitate transfer to Kuala Lumpur. No one has personally met me. In the absence of definitive information of the fate of the passengers involved in travelling to Malaysia appears premature at this juncture. The airlines through its CEO has written, but the concerns appear to be centred around managing the families of the large number of Chinese passengers," said Narendran.

Adding to the frustration and uncertainty, Malaysia's military has said the plane could have turned around from its planned flight path, but there were conflicting statements and reports about how far and in which direction it could have flown after communication was lost.

Narendran also accused the airlines authorities of 'hiding' information regarding the whereabouts of the plane.

"One is left with a creeping suspicion that there is more than that has been shared and one wonder whose interests are being served or protected by this long wait and something that is increasingly feeling surreal and rapidly turning into a farce," said Narendran.

Flight MH370 dropped off the radar, about an hour after taking off from Kuala Lumpur toBeijing early on March 08, under clear night skies and with no suspicion of any mechanical problems.

Dozens of planes and ships have already searched tens of thousands of square miles of Malaysia and off its coasts without finding a trace of the Boeing 777.