Malaysia Airlines attempted one last call to the ill-fated MH370 flight the night it disappeared, Australia's Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss told a media conference today.

Meanwhile Malaysia and Australia signed a memorandum of understanding today committing to share costs of the underwater search for the missing passenger aircraft.

Chinese Vice Minister of Transport, He Jianzhong was also at the Canberra media conference.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau is leading the search with a fleet of three vessels, the Fugro Discovery, Fugro Equator, and GO Phoenix. Finding the black box is key to resolving the mystery of the missing flight. However some maritime experts believe that the failure to locate it prior to the battery expiring makes the task of locating the wreckage all but impossible.