KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 6 — The new lead on the missing Flight MH370, after it was confirmed that a piece of an aircraft wing found on Reunion Island belonged to the plane, will help narrow the search area in the southern Indian Ocean, said Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein.
He said that the flaperon found on the French Indian Ocean island, which Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak confirmed this morning of coming from the Boeing 777 jet, proved that search efforts were in the right area.
“With the new lead, I believe we can narrow the search area further,” Hishammuddin said today after awarding honorary brigadier-general ranks to Johor Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin and Perlis Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Azlan Man.
“I am confident that this is being considered not just by the Transport Ministry led by Datuk Seri Liow [Tiong Lai], but also by the experts from other countries, specifically those from Australia and China,” he added.
However, he said that the search would still be difficult as the search area has proven to be a challenging terrain.
“It will not be easy, because it is the loneliest part of the planet. It is in very deep waters, with hills and valleys. There are not many equipment in the world that can perform the charting of the seabeds in those depths,” he said.
Hishammuddin said the discovery of the floating debris on Reunion Island did not mean the aircraft was near the island.
He said that the experts involved would have to calculate and analyse the ocean currents, the length of time since the discovery, as well as other factors to determine the path of the flotsam.
“There is still a lot of work to be done. The debris alone will not determine where the aircraft is, more importantly, where the black box is, which is needed to learn what happened to MH370,” he said.
He added that the Defence Ministry was prepared to cooperate fully should their services be requested by the Transport Ministry.
Hishammuddin also said that although the confirmation this morning brought back the pain from last year when Flight MH370 disappeared in March 2014, the experience has strengthened the bond between Malaysia and the international community.
“I am confident that this bond, though forged in calamity and sadness, will endure and contribute to bringing us all closer together,” he said.
Flight MH370, with 239 people on board, vanished en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing in March last year, with the newly discovered debris being the first sighting of any part of the aircraft since.
