MH370 Update: Wing Flaperon Proves Malaysia Airlines Plane Crashed Into The Indian Ocean

Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370’s crash site has been more or less confirmed as the southern Indian Ocean, as wing debris found on nearby Reunion Island has been identified as a part of the ill-fated plane.

MH370 Crash Update

Beach cleaners had found a Boeing 777 wing part known as the flaperon on Reunion on July 31. The flaperon was subsequently sent to a French lab, where investigators could confirm that it belonged to MH370, the only known commercial aircraft to have crashed into the water. By Wednesday, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak had enough information about the testing to confirm that the debris matches MH370.

“Today, 513 days since the plane disappeared, it is with a very heavy heart that I must tell you that an international team of experts has conclusively confirmed that the aircraft debris found on Reunion is indeed from MH370,” the prime minister said in a televised statement. “We now have physical evidence that, as I announced on 24th March last year, flight MH370 tragically ended in the southern Indian Ocean.”

“The burden and uncertainty faced by the families during this time has been unspeakable,” Najib had said previously. “It is my hope that this confirmation, however tragic and painful, will at least bring certainty to the families and loved ones of the 239 people onboard MH370.”

In a separate statement, Malaysia Airlines said that it had contacted the family members of the passengers and crew who had perished onboard the flight of the major breakthrough in the investigation.

“It is indeed a major breakthrough for us in resolving the disappearance of MH370,” the airline’s statement read. “We expect and hope that there would be more objects to be found which would be able to help resolve this mystery.”

Although both Razak and Malaysia Airlines have said that the testing on the wing debris is conclusive, French prosecutor Serge Mackowiak was more careful in his own remarks, stating that there was a  “very strong supposition” that the debris belongs to MH370 and that those working on testing would continue to analyze the evidence.

There has been an ongoing search for MH370 since it inexplicably went off the radar on March 8, 2014 with 239 people onboard. Investigators will continue to search for more debris from the plane to glean further information about what led up to the crash. Despite finding a fragment of the plane, the search will remain difficult.