From VOA Learning English,this is In The News.Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 has been missingfor more than 13 months.The airplane, a Boeing 777,was carrying 239 people on a flightbetween Malaysia and China.The plane disappeared over the Indian Ocean on March 8, 2014.Months of air, sea and underwater searchershave yet to find any evidence of the aircraft.Officials involved in the investigationhave been considering what to do nextif nothing is found in the current area of exploration.This week, three countries announced plansto double the search areaif no evidence of Flight 370 is found soon.The announcement followed a joint meeting of Malaysian,Chinese and Australian officials in Kuala Lumpur.Malaysia's Transport Minister, Liow Tiong Lai,spoke to reporters after the talks on Thursday.He said an expanded search will start to the northof the current search area in the Indian Ocean,off the western coast of Australia."If the aircraft is not foundwithin the current 60,000 square kilometer search area,we have collectively decided to extend the searchby an additional 60,000 square kilometerswithin the highest probability area."Looking for wreckage in that extended area could take a year.Since last March, crews have exploredmore than 60 percent of the current search area.The Malaysian, Chinese and Australian officialscontinue to express hopethat the aircraft will be found in those waters.That is where experts have said Flight 370 most likely went down.Warren Truss is Australia's deputy prime minister.He says crews are using some of the best equipmentin the world to look for the plane.Mr. Truss describes the underwater search areaas very challenging or difficult.He notes the search area is a five- to six-day tripfrom the closest port."The weather conditions are challenging.The remoteness of the site is challenging.The depth of the sea in the search area is challenging.The roughness of the sea bed is challenging."Two-thirds of Flight 370's passengers are Chinese nationals.Yang Chuangtang is China's Transportation Minister.He noted his government's desireto discover exactly what happened to the passengers and crew.In his words, "No matter the challenges that will be confronted,China will stand alongside friends Australia and Malaysiato continue the search until the aircraft is found,and the mystery of this unprecedented tragedyin the aviation industry is solved."The ministers refused to answer reporters' questionsabout how much the additional search would cost.Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 began in Kuala Lumpur,and was to have ended in Beijing.But the plane failed to follow its expected flight path,and then disappeared from radar.Some observers think the aircraft may have been placedon a different flight path by its pilot.Investigators believe the plane traveled thousands of kilometersbefore using up all its fuel and falling into deep, distant waters.And that's In The News from VOA Learning English..