Cover image via International Business Times
Filipino authorities dismisses claims that MH370 was found on one of its islands
11 OCT: Malaysian police verifying possible MH370 wreckage found with human bones in Philippines
On 29 July, a flaperon was found on Reunion Island which allegedly belonged to MH370. Following thorough investigations, the French investigators confirmed that the wing flap is indeed from flight MH370.
Image via CNN
4 SEPT: French investigators confirm flaperon found was indeed from missing MH370
Image via CNN
1 Sept: Boeing parts maker cannot confirm that the discovered flaperon is from flight MH370
Image via Sydney Morning Herald
18 AUG: France calls off search for MH370 on Reunion Island
French maritime gendarmes look at a map indicating measures being undertaken in the search for wreckage from the missing MH370 plane at the marina of Saint-Marie on the French island of La Reunion on August 14, 2015
Image via Yahoo
15 AUG: Search for MH370 fragments on Reunion island ends on Monday
A French maritime gendarmerie patrol boat taking part in the search missing MH370 on the French island of La Reunion.
Image via NDTV
12 AUG: Australia confirms flaperon found is from MH370
Image via Newstalk
6 AUG: Transport Minister: Wing flap is from MH370 because it matches MAS' maintenance records
Image via Reuters
Liow also said that Malaysian investigators have picked up more plane debris on Réunion Island, such as aircraft seat cushions and window panes
Meanwhile, family members and relatives of those onboard the missing flight are expressing their disbelief and frustration over conflicting statements from foreign officials as well as MAS' inaction:
PM Najib Razak confirms that the plane debris is from Flight MH370
Image via Najib Razak via Twitter
Image via The Star
5 AUG: Réunion Island holidayer thinks he found a "plane window" from missing MH370
Image via Colin Cosier / Sydney Morning Herald
Bruno, wearing a yellow top, says he found the plastic object while jogging along a St Denis beach.
Image via Colin Cosier / Sydney Morning Herald
However, a policewoman thinks that the plastic object probably came from a sewing machine
Image via AFP / Richard Bouhet
3 AUG: Metallic debris is not a plane door, says Malaysian official
Image via AFP
In fact, French authorities are being increasingly swamped by random flotsam by locals who have been combing the beaches on Réunion Island, hoping to find more washed-up debris
Image via Paul Grover / The Telegraph
Some locals also claimed to have come across several plane-related objects – such as a suitcase and a plane seat – up to 3 months ago. However, beachcomber Nicolas Ferrier did not realise the significance of his discoveries, all of which has been burnt as "rubbish".
Image via Paul Grover / The Telegraph
Meanwhile, Malaysian Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai has called for help from Réunion's neighbouring territories in widening the search for more possible plane debris
Image via Lucas Marie / AP
2 AUG: Plane door found washed up on Réunion Island
Image via Mirror
31 JULY, 7.00PM: Deputy Transport Minister confirms number on plane debris is from Boeing 777
Image via Raymond Wae Tion / EPA
31 JULY, 5.00PM: Chinese water bottle and Indonesian cleaning product washed ashore on Réunion Island
Image via Twitter @PatWheel
30 JULY, 6.00PM: PM Najib releases official statement on possible MH370 plane debris find on Réunion Island
Image via Reuters / Edgar Su
Read the entire statement here:
30 JULY, 5.30PM: Damaged suitcase reportedly found in the same area plane debris was discovered
Image via Twitter @a_forestier
Image via The Rakyat Post
30 JULY, 1.30PM: On Wednesday morning (29 July), a 2-metre (6ft) long piece of plane debris was found on a Réunion Island in the Indian Ocean, raising speculation that the piece may have come from the missing MH370. Here's what we know so far:
1. The piece was found on Réunion Island, a French department off the east coast of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean, by people cleaning up a beach. The island lies about 6,000km to the west of the search area.
Image via CNN
2. The piece resembles the wing flap of an aircraft, more specifically a 'flaperon', the part of the wing that controls the roll and bank of an aircraft. A code – BB670 – is also visible on the aircraft part, which could be a vital clue in determining whether it's from MH370 or not.
Image via Twitter @airlivenet
3. Police examining the wreckage say that the piece looks like it had been in the water for about a year, approximately the same period of time MH370 has been missing
Seashells growing on the wreckage indicate it has been in the water for some time.
Image via Reuters
4. France's BEA air crash investigation agency and Malaysia Airlines (MAS) say that it is still too early to draw conclusions about the wreckage's connection to MH370
Image via AFP / Getty Images
5. Malaysia has sent an investigative team to verify whether the plane wreckage originated from MH370
Image via AP Photo / Vincent Thian
6. An unnamed US official said that air safety investigators have a "high degree of confidence" that the part is of a wing component unique to the Boeing 777, the same model as the MH370
Image via Yannick Piton / AFP / Getty Images
7. French aviation expert Xavier Tytelman also highlighted the " incredible similarities" of the found debris to the flaperon of a Boeing 777 in the following graphic
Image via Twitter @PeurAvion
8. Australia said that the location the debris was found is consistent with analysis and drift modelling that the ill-fated flight ended in the southern Indian Ocean
Image via Twitter @mashable
9. However, there is a possibility that the piece originated from either one of two planes crashes that occurred near the island in 2006 and 2009
10. There are also warnings of a possible hoax, in which UK-based air accident investigator David Gleave pointed out that similar parts are made available from aircraft which have been scrapped for spares
Image via International Business Times
