Flight MH370 families want ‘facts’ as China court hears appeal

Relatives of Chinese passengers aboard Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 are demanding answers and have appealed a Beijing court's compensation ruling, stating it disregarded crucial questions surrounding the aircraft's 2014 disappearance. The Boeing 777, carrying 239 people with two-thirds being Chinese nationals, vanished on March 8, 2014, en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. Despite extensive searches, the plane, its passengers, and the black boxes remain unfound, making it one of aviation's most enduring mysteries.

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When I received the judgement and read the first-instance ruling, my first thought was that the court was insulting the families of the passengers, that it was mocking us.

"When I received the judgement and read the first-instance ruling, my first thought was that the court was insulting the families of the passengers, that it was mocking us," said Li Eryou, 69, whose son was on the flight. He expressed immense anger over the lack of apology in 12 years and criticized the first-instance judge for treating the international case as a mere local traffic accident, resulting in what he deemed a "pitifully small" compensation amount. The families are seeking the establishment of facts, not just financial compensation.

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In 12 years, no one has ever apologised to us. I feel immense anger.

Jiang Hui, whose mother was on the plane, echoed this sentiment, stating that the primary reason for the appeal is the court's failure to clearly establish the facts of the case and to address Malaysia Airlines' inaction since 2014. "What matters to us is the establishment of the facts. That's our biggest demand," he told AFP. The court had "merely ruled on the amount of compensation, which is not everything we, the families, are looking for."

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This is an international case... but the first-instance judge treated it like nothing more than an ordinary local traffic accident, which is why the compensation amount ended up being so pitifully small.

Malaysia announced in June that the search for flight MH370 will be extended through June 2027, led by private firm Ocean Infinity. The most recent search efforts, conducted in two stages starting in March 2025, returned empty-handed. Jiang Hui expressed gratitude for the extension but also requested that families be allowed to organize their own search missions, emphasizing that "Only by searching would we be able to find it."

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The main reason why some families are appealing is that the first-instance court did not clearly establish the facts of the case, nor did it criticise or correct Malaysia Airlines’ inaction since 2014.