paula newton is live in perth, australia. you know, malaysia's acting transport minister is hoping for survivors. he spoke to journalists in kuala lumpur. let's do to paula hancocks now. paula, each day, he seems to get more exhausted. he is saying it is not unreasonable for families to ask for hope, but as i was just saying to our paula newton in australia, this must be wearing on everybody by now. >> reporter: absolutely. certainly it is the hardest for the families and relatives of the passengers on board. we are three weeks now and still there is no physical evidence. they are just waiting for any information now. we know the acting transportation minister met with families saturday at the hotels where some of them are holed up. we understand from the private meeting, the families were asking that even if their loved ones were not alive, they are dead, they want guarantees that the authorities will continue to search for them. this is what the transportation minister said to them. he said, i give you a guarantee that the m

paula newton, cnn at australian naval base sterling. >> all right, paula newton, thank you very much. want to bring back will ripley now. he is following the ship, the ocean shield, an australian ship with black box detect they're was supposed to be on its way out into the southern indian ocean. but there has been a delay. and will, i understand you have some information as to why. >> yeah, we just spoke with the australian defense force. so there is an a-frame on the boat that is going to drop this equipment into the water. and that needs to be inspected. specifically, the welding on the a-frame. they need to check to it make sure that it will hold up. we have also just learned that this afternoon at some point, they're actually going to bring the ocean shield out here, and they're going to do some tests. we don't know what kind of tests. we don't know what it's going to look like or what they're testing. we expect to see some activity here over the next few hour. we'll of course be monitoring. we're working to get more information. and then we know we're look at a 6:00 p.m. local ti

cnn's paula newton is live in perth, australia, with the latest on the search effort. ohn. well, again, that disappointing news that those four objects, indeed, was fishing equipment, not what they were looking for. i have to say what is significant is that the search is now involving so many ships in the area. and remember, they're the ones that are going to be able to get to sea level and investigate any kind of leads that are spotted in that search zone. today, australia's prime minister, tony abbott, making it clear that so far, this search is open-ended. now, he says, look, if this mystery can be solved, if it can be solved, they're the ones to solve it. and he also gave us a hint at how complicated this investigation is already. take a listen. >> everyone wants to get to the bottom of this mystery. everyone is united in their common grief, in their common anxiety, to resolve this. i don't think we've got a whole lot of competing national pride at stake here. i think we've got at stake here a whole lot of people who just want to solve the problem. >> reporter: you

paula newton is standing by. paula, what's the significance of this new information about the last voice communication with the cockpit, with the plane's captain and co-captain? how does it differ specifically from earlier language, and what's the assessment, the change? what does it mean? >> reporter: well, the assessment from what he had said earlier, first off, they first said it was the co pilot who said this, and then now it turns out they want to look at their transcript again and look at the audio. and now they can't decide if it's the pilot or the co pilot. more than that, it comes ever so slightly closer to what normal protocol would be. we're told it's still not normal protocol for a pilot or a co pilot to say either/or. but secondly, wolf, it actually puts a lot of the credibility of the malaysian government at the heart of this. we have been hearing from the relatives of those missing from that flight again and again, they cannot take this. they can't take all the contradictory information. they want t

cnn paula newton is in perth, australia for us. paula?carol, i'll tell you why it's been a bit of a frustrating day here in western australia, but we'll have more on how this search is shaping up. that's straight after the break. [ male announcer ] this is joe woods' first day of work. and his new boss told him two things -- cook what you love, and save your money. joe doesn't know it yet, but he'll work his way up from busser to waiter to chef before opening a restaurant specializing in fish and game from the great northwest. he'll start investing early, he'll find some good people to help guide him, and he'll set money aside from his first day of work to his last, which isn't rocket science. it's just common sense. from td ameritrade. a good night's sleep... and aveeno®. [ female announcer ] only aveeno® positively radiant face moisturizer has an active naturals® total soy formula... one of nature's most effective skin tone correctors. it helps reduce the look of brown spots in just four weeks. now that's an idea you don't have to sleep

. >> let's bring in cnn's paula newton in perth, australia, for the search today. >> paula, good morningcan you tell us more about the suspicious objects that the chinese aircraft spotted? >> reporter: well, we saw the chinese aircraft come in a few hours ago. they said that they saw three objects. one red, one white, one orange. what are they? that's what everyone wants to know. clearly they were quite intrigued by what they saw. but i caution they were about 1,000 feet above the water. usually the other surveillance aircraft is about 500 feet above the water. and still, they spotted things that have no significance still. they are hanging on to whatever they can in terms of trying to find some sight of 370. at this phase, it's the next part that becomes crucial. six ships, somewhere already on their way there. it is approaching darkness here. at the same time, in about eight hours, those ships will begin to scour the ocean surface, try and find the objects spotted by the plane and actually pick them up. and that is the goal here, especially as this investigation enters that next phase.

still as we learn from atika shubert in perth their morale seems high and paula newton talked to the captain of a canadian patrol plane about the mission. >> reporter: the location of the mission may have changed but search crews determine to find something, anything in the waters off the coast of perth, australia. >> the three windows. >> they are the main ones used. >> reporter: captain mike mcbetween, a veteran pilot on military exchange takes us on board the p-3 orion sideline aircraft he will fly to the new search site in a few hours. >> these are the main ones. >> reporter: search specialists will scan the waters as it flies 500 feet above the ocean. when they find something they're yelling mark, mark, mark. >> they're on headset and call that mark and we'll have the smoke and have a reference point. >> reporter: it's still difficult to spot the object a second time. that's just part of the problem for flight 370. >> unfortunately, if you don't find anything, it brings a bit of a disappointment to the crew. >> reporter: that's been the hallmark. crews are confident if they keep

paula newton is live in perth, australia. you were onboard "ocean shield" earlier today.y onboard and also a sobering day. i think, victor, when you look at all that equipment and we discussed the bluefin-21 and underwater submergible and it can actually comb the sea bed and then the ping locater, which is so important. it can hear the signals coming from the flight data recorder and the cockpit voice recorder from about a mile away. all good stuff. the problem, victor, right now with this search zone still being so large that it is really still a tall order. i, though, did speak to commander mark matthews with the u.s. navy, he is in position right now and he was quite blunt about the task ahead. >> we certainly have our challenges in front of us. what we're trying to find is an acoustic admission from one of the pingers on the flight data. typically the batteries clast for 30 days, usually they last a little bit longer and that's what we're trying to find. what is critical is that the teams out there searching for the surface debris they get good position data on that a

paula newton has more. >> ocean shield ready hours away from sailing off to a search zone that so farno trace of flight 370. the australian ship will be the linchpin of the investigation but only if and when air wreckage is found. >> this is a challenging job. the first is to find debris so we can back out an impact point for initial search area. >> fitted on board u.s. navy towed pinger located isolate from cockpit and flight data recorders and bluefin 21, underwater vehicle combing the ocean floor looking for wreckage. no matter how specialized and sophisticated this equipment, it won't do any good unless the search zone will be narrowed. >> we need better point of impact estimation than we have right now. >> u.s. navy commander mark matthews leading the team that will deploy locater equipment. it needs to become within a mile of the pinger just like the one he's holding. >> i can search approximately 50 square miles a day. so really if we're searching for a beacon and living on borrowed time, i need something less than 1,000 square miles. >> right now we're dealing with 100,000 squ

here is paula newton. >> the ocean shield is at the ready and just hours from sailing off to a searchat so far has yielded no trace of flight 370. the australian ship will be the linchpin of the investigation but only if and when air wreckage is found. >> this is a complicated job. first real stick finding debris so we can back out and impact point to give us an initial searchary. >> being fitted on board, a u.s. navy tow pinger locater that will try and is late signal from cockpit and flight data reporters and bluefin 21, an underwater vehicle that will comb the ocean floor looking for wreckage. >> no matter how specialized and sophisticated this equipment, it won't do any good until the search zone will be narrowed. we need better point of impact estimation than we have right now. >> u.s. navy commander mark matthews is leading the team that will deploy the locater equipment, and it needs to come within a mile of the pinger just like the one he's holding. >> i can search approximately 50 square miles a day. so really if we're searching for a beacon and living on borrowed time, i nee

we begin with the latest from western australia with the breaking news from paula newton that joins us now. this information could be a game changer. why are they shifting the search area? >> reporter: it is definitely a game changer. the reason is that when they say they refined their radar analysis, they determined that plane was likely flying faster, which means it ran out of fuel, which means it's in a completely different location than they thought. still shifting much more to the north and east. what does that mean? it does make the search much easier, in the sense it moves it closer to shore. we've been told about the conditions out there, they're horrific on certain days. but it's hard to determine the credibility of what's come before, all of that evidence from satellites, is it debris, is it garbage, what was it? they continue to say, and i'm sure we'll hear more about this in the press conference, that they need to refine their search area further. still, anderson, they are calling this a very, very credible lead. >> here's what i don't understand, but a, you mentioned the s

paula newton, great job in perth, australia. >>> inevitably, there will be a time when some of the shipst quits in the southern indian ocean. last option in the search for flight 370 then might come from space. the eyes from the satellites. joining me to talk about what happens when the search crews go home and effectively the effort comes from the skies. keith massback, ceo of the geo space intelligence foundation, dedicated to supporting and improving the skills that satellite imaging requires. keith, thank you so much for taking the time to be with us today. how good are those eyes in the skies right now, because right now is the time that we need them to be good. >> well, thanks for having me, ashleigh. look, we've got an incredible amount of remote sensing assets in space. over 100 satellites owned by many nations who have put things on orbit. we have seen contributions from the chinese, from the thais, from the japanese, from u.s. company digital globe, actually the world leader in terms of commercial imaging. and then the quote, unquote, spy satellites where they're undoubtedly su

. >> let's go straight to the australian air base outside perth, australia, where we find our paula newton. we just heard the australian prime minister say that the search is ramping up. let's face it. no he did bring, no debris field has been found. they don't really know where to look. what is the game plan with time running out? >> reporter: well, at this point, there are key differences in the way they are searching now, mikaela. we have really assets on the air and sea. about 11 ships. the "ocean shield" will be joining them in a day or two with the expert equipment. what this means is that they will be able to cover a lot more of that ocean to be able to see exactly if there is any debris there. in terms of strategy, when you have those planes in the air and they spot debris, it is really within an hour or two that boats are able to go over, investigate and determine if it is garbage or something significant. i think tony ab bbott was sayin settle in. this is going to take a long time. we are no the giving up. much the case in flight 447. the air france flight. they are saying that t

let's bring in paula newton with the very latest. paula?ere to the air base. unfortunately, nothing new or significant for today. at the same time this search is moving into a whole new high gear. today search teams back to square one. debris sighted this weekend apparently leading to dead ends. four orange objects spotted by an awe australian reconnaissance plane and other floating objects that ships recovered turned out to be fishing equipment and dead jellyfish. >> none of these objects would lead to mh 370. >> reporter: as the search enters its fourth week the australian prime minister tells cnn they are not giving up. >> how long can this be sustained realistically? >> the effort is ramping up. >> reporter: ten aircraft and ten ships from seven countries among those ships australia's ocean shield prepping to depart port. i toured the ship this weekend as crews outfitted the vessel with an unmanned under water robot and black box detector from the u.s. navy. the latest analysis of satellite and sonar radar has zoned in on this search ar

. >> cnn's paula newton joins us from perth, australia. paula, that's where we believe the objects will be brought to be examined. is that right? >> yeah, absolutely. some of it though is pretty obvious what they've been taking out of the water is what they describe as garbage and nothing significant so far. but as you point out, within hours we will have the full contingent of at least six ships in the area and they can begin that process of actually retrieving the objects out of the water, taking a good look at them and really going back to those spots that were first spotted by the planes. i don't know if you can hear behind me, the last of the p-3 orions just arrived here at base. that's after spending a lot more time on the scene. because of those different locations, better weather, before they were spending an hour and a half to two hours on the site. now they're spending closer to three and four hours. we have no word yet if this last flight spotted anything up there that's worthy of going back and checking up on but we should expec

paula newton has the latest. >> reporter: the ocean shield is at the ready and just hours from sailingto a search gain that so far has yielded no trace of flight 370. the australian ship will be the lynch pin of the investigation but only if and when air wreckage is found. >> this is a very challenging job and the first real stick here is to find debris so we can pinpoint an impact point to give us an initial search area. >> being fitted on board a u.s. navy pinger locate or that will try and isolate the signal from the cockpit and flight data recorders and the blue fin 21, an under water vehicle that will come the ocean floor looking for wreckage. >> no matter how specialized and sophisticated this equipment it won't do any good unless that search zone can be narrowed. >> we need better point of impact, estimation than we had right now. >> u.s. navy commander mark matthews is leading the team that will deploy the locate or equipment and it needs to come within about a mile of the pinger, just like the one he's holding. >> i can search approximately 50 square miles a day, so really, if