UPDATE 11 (Day15) MISSING MH370: Eyes on decks in arduous hunt

22 March 2014| last updated at 03:34PM High-tech satellites and sophisticated radar systems have so far found no trace of the plane that vanished two weeks ago, forcing rescuers to switch tack in the search for any possible debris from Flight MH370.

Australian authorities, who are coordinating the search in a vast region 2,500 kilometres (1,550 miles) southwest of Perth, said Friday that teams were prioritising visual clues over radar after poor weather had hampered the operation.

In the northern sector of the plane's projected flightpath, eyes and binoculars are also in use as rescuers checking Southeast Asian seas battle turbulence and a blazing sun as the arduous hunt enters its third week.

Six aircraft flew low over Australia's search zone on Saturday with skilled observers looking out of the windows in an operation Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss said was "intensive".

"While these aircraft are equipped with very advanced technology, much of this search is actually visual -- using the eyes of men and women to be able to look across the ocean and try and pick up any pieces of debris and parts that perhaps may be related to this aircraft's disappearance," he told reporters.

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UPDATE 11 (Day15) MISSING MH370: Eyes on decks in arduous hunt