PETALING JAYA: The piece of metal believed to be part of the missing MH370 plane found on Réunion Island in the Indian Ocean is “almost certainly” from a Boeing 777 aircraft, says Deputy Transport Minister Datuk Abdul Aziz Kaprawi.
“The flaperon is similar to that on a Boeing 777 aircraft. It’s almost certain,” he said.
Abdul Aziz said he was informed of this by MH370 chief investigator Datuk Kok Soo Chon.
A Malaysian team is on the way to Réunion Island.
The team, Abdul Aziz said, would be able to conclude in a couple of days if the piece of debris was indeed from the MAS plane.
“We have contacted the Office of Investigations and Analysis (BEA), which is the French investigation body for accidents in civil aviation, on this find.
“We came to an agreement that they will bring the flaperon to Paris, so our team will work together with them in making (the) verifications in Paris,” Bernama quoted Abdul Aziz as saying.
He said it was too early to draw conclusions until there was solid proof that the debris belonged to the missing aircraft.
Meanwhile, several news reports said serial numbers were spotted on the flaperon.
A close-up image taken by Réunion news site Clicanoore showed the number 657BB. A Boeing 777 aircraft maintenance manual available online showed that the number was linked to a part called the “Flaperon leading edge panel” on the left wing of the plane.
However, other news reports cited BB670 as the number appearing on the flaperon.
MAS or Boeing were not able to confirm this.
Related stories:
Flaperon to be sent to France for tests
Family of MH370 victims thrown into emotional turmoil with latest find
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