Police are resuming the search for missing airman Corrie McKeague at the Milton landfill site.
An extended search of the site, likely to last four to six weeks, will take place concentrating on an area of Cell 22 close to the site of the previous 20-week search.
A police spokesman said the decision to resume had been taken ‘after thorough consideration of the issues involved’.
He said the nature of waste disposal is not a precise science, acknowledging the potential for ‘variance in the information officers have to work from’.
Detective Superintendent Katie Elliott said: “Throughout this rigorous investigation we have remained committed to following all reasonable lines of enquiry in our endeavours to discover what has happened to Corrie.
“Confronted by the variances in the way waste can be deposited and through further investigation we cannot discount the possibility Corrie may be elsewhere in Cell 22.
“Therefore, we believe our decision to extend the search area is the correct one.
“We have spoken to Corrie’s mum and dad to explain our decision, and share in detail the reasons behind it.
“We will, of course, continue to work together with Corrie’s family as the inquiry progresses.
“We can only hope that over the coming weeks the resumption of the search brings the answers that we are all hoping for and especially, of course, for Nicola and Martin.”
Corrie was last seen in Bury St Edmunds in an area known as the ‘horseshoe’ on Saturday, September 24, 2016, where there was a bin lorry collection at around 4.15am-4.20am.
One bin was collected from the area that morning which was taken to a transfer station in Red Lodge and then to the Milton Landfill site in Cambridgeshire.
On site preparation work for the resumption of the search is set to take place this week.
A review of the Suffolk Constabulary investigation is being conducted by the East Midlands Special Operations Unit (EMSOU).
The constabulary’s decision to extend the search is supported by the review team although its report has yet to be concluded.
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