Crash investigators are examining what may be the most significant development yet in the 17-month search for Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 after debris potentially related to the crash was found on the Indian Ocean island of La Réunion.
A French aviation expert pointed on Twitter to apparently strong similarities between the part — apparently a flaperon, a control surface from a wing — and the same part on a Boeing 777, the type of aircraft lost. Associated Press, the wire service, quoted an anonymous “US official” as saying “with a high degree of confidence” that the part came from a 777.
Daniel O’Malley, a spokesman with the Australian Transport Safety Bureau, said on Thursday the agency was working with French officials and experts from Boeing to try and confirm the type of aircraft the debris was from and whether it was from MH370.