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US and China to beef up MH370 search

More resources are on the way to WA to help in the Indian Ocean search for the missing Malaysia Airlines plane.

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Source: AAP


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The US and China are sending more resources to the hunt for the missing Malaysia Airlines flight, which is now confirmed to have been lost in the Indian Ocean west of Perth.

The Pentagon says an undersea US Navy drone and a pinger locator, which can be used to track down Flight MH370's black box flight recorder, are on the way.

They are due to arrive in Perth later on Tuesday or Wednesday.

The sonar-equipped Bluefin "autonomous underwater vehicle" can scan the ocean's depths for any sunken wreckage.

The towed pinger locator will likely be deployed to search for the missing plane's black box recorder, which is estimated to have around 12 days of battery life left.

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China is sending more vessels to join its warships and specially-equipped planes already in Western Australia to search for and potentially salvage wreckage.

China's state news agency Xinhua reports the country's maritime search and rescue centre is "working on solutions", with a promise to beef up search efforts.

In the US, Pentagon spokesman Rear Admiral John Kirby said the underwater vehicle and towed pinger locator had left JFK Airport in New York.

"There will be a small number of people going along with them," he said.

"I think there are two on the flight with the gear itself, and then another eight folks will be flying separately to Perth to prepare the equipment."


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