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While some of us were sleeping, confirmation that flaperon was from MH370:

MH370: Can Missing Plane Mystery Now Be Solved?

Confirmation that debris found on Reunion Island belongs to MH370 is a "huge step" to solving the mystery, one expert believes.
22:20, UK, Wednesday 05 August 2015


Video: 'Discovery Doesn't Tell Us Why'

The discovery of a wing flaperon belonging to MH370 raises hopes that the mystery of the vanishing plane could eventually be solved - but experts are divided on whether the truth will ever be known.

Confirmation that debris found on Reunion Island is from the Malaysia Airlines plane appears at least to discredit conspiracy theories such as the aircraft landing on a remote military base.

Jakarta-based aviation consultant Gerry Soejatman said the discovery was a "huge step".
"People want all the answers, but look, let's be real. We must be glad that we found something at all. Now we know roughly where it might have crashed," he said.

"This answers a lot of questions, actually. It eliminates other theories, conspiracy theories.


Video: Plane Debris Is From Flight MH370

"If the black box is found later on, it is likely we could get more answers."

John Page, an aircraft design expert at the University of New South Wales in Australia, said the Boeing 777 most likely broke up on impact with the water.

He believes main body parts will have sunk - but lighter pieces such as flaps, elevators, ailerons and rudders could be floating somewhere.

However, he thinks the chances of finding them remain slim.

"I'm certain other bits floated," he said. "But whether they've washed up anywhere is another question. The chances of hitting an island are pretty low."

Experts think the wing surface may have stayed afloat due to air pockets in its structure - but aviation consultant Gideon Ewers is sceptical about whether other pieces will appear in a similar fashion.

He told Sky News: "This confirms the plane went down somewhere in the Indian Ocean - but we pretty much knew that two years ago.

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"It won't take us any further down the path of what happened and why.

"It would be nice to find more debris (but) am I confident or even hopeful? Not really, I'm afraid."

MH370 vanished with 239 people on board on 8 March last year - and families say this is "not the end" of their quest for closure.

Michael Smart, a professor of aerospace engineering at the University of Queensland, is more hopeful that loved ones may one day get the answers they crave.

"If one piece turns up, perhaps there's a likelihood that others will as well," he said.

"It's strange to think you'd find one part that floated and nothing else."

Malaysian PM's full statement

Read Najib Razak’s dramatic statement about missing flight MH370 in full
  
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MH370: French authorities say flight's technical specifications matches Réunion debris


[url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2015/aug/05/mh370-malaysian-prime-minister-confirms-debris-found-belongs-to-missing-flight-video] MH370: Malaysian prime minister confirms Réunion debris found belongs to missing flight

We have shared information in real time with authorities who have the necessary experience to interpret the data. We have been working nonstop to assist the investigation. And we have put our national security second to the search for the missing plane.

It is widely understood that this has been a situation without precedent.

We have conducted search operations over land, in the South China Sea, the Straits of Malacca, the Andaman Sea and the Indian Ocean. At every stage, we acted on the basis of verified information, and we followed every credible lead. Sometimes these leads have led nowhere.

There has been intense speculation. We understand the desperate need for information on behalf of the families and those watching around the world. But we have a responsibility to the investigation and the families to only release information that has been corroborated. And our primary motivation has always been to find the plane.

In the first phase of the search operation, we searched near MH370’s last known position, in the South China Sea. At the same time, it was brought to our attention by the Royal Malaysian Air Force that, based on their primary radar, an aircraft – the identity of which could not be confirmed – made a turn back. The primary radar data showed the aircraft proceeding on a flight path which took it to an area north of the Straits of Malacca.

Given this credible data, which was subsequently corroborated with the relevant international authorities, we expanded the area of search to include the Straits of Malacca and, later, to the Andaman Sea.

Early this morning I was briefed by the investigation team – which includes the FAA [US Federal Aviation Administration], NTSB [US National Transportation Safety Board], the AAIB [Uk Air Accidents Investigation Branch], the Malaysian authorities and the acting minister of transport – on new information that sheds further light on what happened to MH370.

Based on new satellite information, we can say with a high degree of certainty that the Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System (ACARS) was disabled just before the aircraft reached the East coast of peninsular Malaysia. Shortly afterwards, near the border between Malaysian and Vietnamese air traffic control, the aircraft’s transponder was switched off.

From this point onwards, the Royal Malaysian Air Force primary radar showed that an aircraft which was believed – but not confirmed – to be MH370 did indeed turn back. It then flew in a westerly direction back over peninsular Malaysia before turning northwest. Up until the point at which it left military primary radar coverage, these movements are consistent with deliberate action by someone on the plane.

Today, based on raw satellite data that was obtained from the satellite data service provider, we can confirm that the aircraft shown in the primary radar data was flight MH370. After much forensic work and deliberation, the FAA, NTSB, AAIB and the Malaysian authorities, working separately on the same data, concur.

According to the new data, the last confirmed communication between the plane and the satellite was at 8:11AM Malaysian time on Saturday 8th March. The investigations team is making further calculations which will indicate how far the aircraft may have flown after this last point of contact. This will help us to refine the search.

Due to the type of satellite data, we are unable to confirm the precise location of the plane when it last made contact with the satellite.

However, based on this new data, the aviation authorities of Malaysia and their international counterparts have determined that the plane’s last communication with the satellite was in one of two possible corridors: a northern corridor stretching approximately from the border of Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan to northern Thailand, or a southern corridor stretching approximately from Indonesia to the southern Indian ocean. The investigation team is working to further refine the information.

In view of this latest development the Malaysian authorities have refocused their investigation into the crew and passengers on board. Despite media reports that the plane was hijacked, I wish to be very clear: we are still investigating all possibilities as to what caused MH370 to deviate from its original flight path.

This new satellite information has a significant impact on the nature and scope of the search operation. We are ending our operations in the South China Sea and reassessing the redeployment of our assets. We are working with the relevant countries to request all information relevant to the search, including radar data.

As the two new corridors involve many countries, the relevant foreign embassies have been invited to a briefing on the new information today by the Malaysian Foreign Ministry and the technical experts. I have also instructed the Foreign Ministry to provide a full briefing to foreign governments which had passengers on the plane. This morning, Malaysia Airlines has been informing the families of the passengers and crew of these new developments.

Clearly, the search for MH370 has entered a new phase. Over the last seven days, we have followed every lead and looked into every possibility. For the families and friends of those involved, we hope this new information brings us one step closer to finding the plane.

MTF..P2