Now investigators will reportedly turn their focus to the area around Reunion Island to determine if the remainder of the flight is buried somewhere beneath the Indian Ocean. “But we need real evidence in order to fully believe that our loved ones were on that plane“. We must be glad that we found something at all.
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The French government also said it will deploy additional police to the island itself and to its coastal waters.
But French investigators stopped short of confirming the link, only saying it was highly likely. The airline described the find as “a major breakthrough”.
American and Australian officials echoed the French, leaving the Malaysians on their own, though no less convinced that they are in the right.
The flaperon was manufactured by EADS CASA Espacio LS, a Madrid-based aircraft company that is now a division of Airbus Group SE, another person familiar with the probe said.
Bishop said Australia had pledged another $40 million US to the search, but calculating who was contributing what to the hunt was not the pertinent issue.
On Friday, search efforts were bolstered by the participation of Mauritian authorities.
Above: The wing part found on Reunion last week.
However, he said they had not yet been verified as coming from MH370.
At a news conference Friday, Reunion Prefect Dominique Sorain said some debris recovered in recent days “is not as obvious as the flaperon” and would require “much more complex analysis”.
“We hope very much that the debris that was discovered on Reunion Island, if it is found to be conclusively part of the aircraft, that this will help to bring some sense of closure about what happened”, he said in Kuala Lumpur.
But Liow said on Thursday that certain characteristics of the wing part, including its paint, matched MH370 maintenance records – backing up Najib’s announcement that it was part of the plane.
The discovery of the flaperon sparked anger and scepticism among grieving Chinese families who want clearer answers and have accused Malaysia of withholding information. It had 239 people on board, majority Chinese. “The expert team strongly feel and confirm that it is MH370”.
“One piece is unlikely to be too important as to causation”, Alexander said.
Paul Weeks’ sister Sara Weeks said the families want 100 percent confirmation before they take the next step and plan funerals or memorial services.
China’s Foreign Ministry has reacted to Malaysia’s confirmation by saying that the result points to a conclusion that the flight crashed.
“Malaysia Airlines would like to sincerely convey our deepest sorrow that the object… was indeed from Flight MH370.”
Of course, the rescue work has to be continued. “Tell us the truth”.
Relatives of those missing on Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 are angry at apparent mixed signals over whether part of the plane has been found.
It was unclear whether the mix-up was a result of miscommunication between the two countries, differing notions of the burden of proof or whether Malaysian officials were overeager to send out some definitive signal for relatives of the missing.
Ross Tapsell, a Malaysia expert at the Australian National University, said he suspects Najib was trying to distract Malaysians from a corruption scandal.
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“I don’t think going to the embassy can actually solve the problem”, Wen told dpa, “But maybe the media can help amplify our demand and draw larger attention”.
