Flight 370: Families frustrated but keep the faith

(CNN) -- Nur Laila Ngah smiles, but it's a brave face she's putting on.

Her husband Wan Swaid Ismail was a member of the cabin crew on Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 that disappeared more than six weeks ago.

"Emotionally, it's up and down. You know? Sometimes, I'm OK. Sometimes, so-so. Sometimes -- always -- very sad," said Laila.

The couple had been planning to celebrate their 13th anniversary this year. They have three children, ages 12, 10 and 8.

Recalling a conversation she had with her husband before he left, Laila said: "I was asking him, 'Are we going to have the next 13 years together?' Of course."

Their children, she said: "They have faith that their father will be coming back."

Nothing new

But a full 45 days into the search, that possibility seems less and less likely.

The underwater drone scanning the ocean for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 began its ninth mission Monday with "no contacts of interest" in its last eight, the Australia's Joint Agency Coordination Centre said.

The Bluefin-21 has scanned about two-thirds of the intended territory without finding any sign of the missing plane.

These efforts may be a main focus of the search, but they aren't the only part.

Australia's Joint Agency Coordination Centre announced Monday morning that up to 10 military aircraft and 11 ships would participate in the day's search for the Boeing 777 and the 239 passengers and crew on board.

The weather isn't making the task easier.

Tropical Cyclone Jack is circulating northwest of the search area. And while it won't hit directly, this system should increase winds and rains.

Few answers

For families of the missing passengers, the wait is agonizing -- and infuriating.

On Monday, Malaysian government officials met in Beijing with several family members. Most of those on board were Chinese.

Frustrated with their muted responses, they chanted, "Live up to commitments, no more delays, no more lies."

A similar meeting over the weekend in the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur, left family members similarly frustrated.

Malaysia's foreign ministry says it understands their need for answers, but doesn't have many to offer.

That is perhaps the most frustrating thing for Mohamad Shaari, whose cousin and his new wife were on the flight. They were on their way to Beijing for their honeymoon.

He believes they're still alive.

"The sea cannot just swallow a plane," Shaari said Sunday. "I believe the plane has been hijacked."

It's a common belief.

"I believe the government didn't try to hide ... any information from us," said Hamid Ramlan. "They are telling the truth, but then mostly members of ... the families -- they do not want to believe." That includes his wife.

"My wife cannot accept that. She still believes that the plane was hijacked and she believes that my daughter is still alive."

 His daughter and new son-in-law were another honeymoon couple on the flight.

The families' list 

It was early on March 8 when Flight 370 set off from the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur, destined for Beijing.

What happened next has been a confounding mystery, with the frustration of passengers' family members compounded by a scarcity of details from authorities.

New bits of information that have come out six weeks later may help round out the picture but don't answer the main question: Why did the plane go off course, and where is it now?

These recent developments include a senior Malaysian aviation source's assertion that the jetliner deviated from its flight path while inside Vietnamese airspace.

It turned left, then climbed to 39,000 feet -- below its maximum safe limit of 43,100 feet -- and maintained that altitude for about 20 minutes over the Malay Peninsula before beginning to descend, the source said.

Malaysia Airlines has declined to answer CNN's questions on various matters -- including the fact that, according to the source, the missing jet was equipped with four emergency locator transmitters. When triggered by a crash, ELTs are designed to transmit their location to a satellite.

Relatives of people aboard the jetliner have drawn up 26 questions -- many of them technical issues -- that they want addressed by Malaysian officials.

Among them: What's in the flight's log book? Can they review the jet's maintenance records? Can they listen to recordings of the Boeing 777 pilot's conversations with air traffic controllers just before contact was lost?

There's no word on when families will get the answers they're looking for.

Their wait continues.

- CNN

loading...