AKIPRESS.COM - Families of the passengers and crew on missing Flight MH370 received a text with the crushing news there was no hope left for their loved ones.

“It is with deep sadness that Malaysia Airlines had to confirm to the families of those on board Flight MH370 that it must now be assumed the flight had been lost. As the Prime Minister said, respect for the families is essential at this difficult time. And it is in that spirit that we informed the majority of the families in advance of the Prime Minister’s statement in person and by telephone. SMSs were used only as an additional means of communicating with the families. Those families have been at the heart of every action the company has taken since the flight disappeared on 8th March and they will continue to be so. When Malaysia Airlines receives approval from the investigating authorities, arrangements will be made to bring the families to the recovery area and until that time, we will continue to support the ongoing investigation,” said in the media statement of the company released on March 25.

New satellite data analysis showed the Malaysia Airlines jet crashed in a remote part of the southern Indian Ocean, with 239 people on board.

Beijing-bound MH370 vanished from civilian radar less than an hour after it took off from Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur on March 8. There has since been no sighting of the Boeing 777 except for debris spotted on satellite images in remote waters west of Australia.