article_snippet: If anything, I'm slightly more optimistic than six months ago, because we have more confidence in the data, and we have proven the search equipment and techniques work to the necessary standards," Martin Dolan's said.
article_snippet: Since October, more than 24,000 square kilometers -- roughly 40% of what the ATSB calls the "priority search area" -- has been scanned, with the remainder of the work scheduled to be finished by May before weather conditions worsen as the southern winter approaches.
article_snippet: Dolan is careful to point out search efforts are meeting or exceeding expectations, dismissing concerns over stormy weather or delays in installing equipment as "part of the deal.
article_snippet: The current search area is the result of months of analysis and reexamination of satellite data by an international team of experts, combined with aircraft performance factors such as fuel range, speed, and altitude.
article_snippet: The current ATSB search strategy remains the best search strategy," Exner said.
article_snippet: The ATSB's Dolan cautioned that search teams have placed equal priority on all areas within the 60,000 square kilometer search zone.  