Huge problems: Search for MH370 hit by more technical issues with deep-sea sub

THE search for the missing Malaysia Airlines jet is in crisis after the deep-sea mission to try and recover the plane's wreckage was cut short due to technical problems.

For the second day in a row the Bluefin-21, the robotic underwater vehicle, was forced to resurface before completing its search of the southern Indian Ocean due to the extreme depths it encountered.
And according to one report it could take the high-tech drone TWO MONTHS to comb through the 600-square-km area where MH370 is believed to have gone down.
The search is taking place on Zenith Plateau, a part of the Indian Ocean which has never been mapped before, that is likely to be covered by a sludge of microscopic organisms.
The current search area is about the size of LA and serious questions must now be raised over the hope of finding any clues to the plane's disappearance.

EFFORT: The mission to find the plane is continuing in an area the size of LA in the southern Indian Ocean [REUTERS]

“If this mystery is solvable, we will solve it”

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott

On Tuesday the Bluefin-21 encountered depths beyond its range and had to return after only six hours of scanning, when usually it would complete around 16 hours of searching.
It was also revealed that the phone belonging to MH370's co-pilot Fariq Abdul Hamid was on and made contact with a communications tower 30 minutes after the plane changed course – indicating the Boeing 777 was flying very low.
Both Fariq and the plane's captain Zaharie Ahamad Shah have been heavily scrutinised ever since the plane vanished over a month ago.
There have been claims that Shah had become "distressed" and "disturbed" after the collapse of his marriage and may have intentionally crashed the plane as part of a suicide attempt.