Plane search expands from Australia to Kazakhstan

Plane search expands from Australia to Kazakhstan

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — The search for the missing Malaysian jet pushed deep into the northern and southern hemispheres today as Australia scoured the southern Indian Ocean and Kazakhstan – more than 10,000 kilometers (6,000 miles) to the northwest – answered Malaysia’s call for help in the unprecedented hunt. French investigators arriving in Kuala Lumpur to lend expertise from the two-year search for an Air France jet that crashed into the Atlantic Ocean in 2009 said they were able to rely on distress signals. But that vital tool is missing in the Malaysia Airlines mystery because flight 370’s communications were deliberately severed ahead of its disappearance more than a week ago, investigators say.