(Reuters) — French gendarmes and police examined a large piece of plane debris found on the beach in Saint-Andre, on the French Indian Ocean island of La Reunion on Wednesday (July 29).
France’s BEA air crash investigation agency said it was examining the debris, in coordination with Malaysian and Australian authorities, to determine whether it came from Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, which vanished last year in one of the biggest mysteries in aviation history.
Malaysia’s deputy transport minister said on Thursday (July 30) that he is “almost certain” that plane debris found on Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean is from a Boeing 777, heightening the possibility it could be wreckage from missing Flight MH370.
Malaysia Airlines was operating a Boeing 777 on the ill-fated flight, which vanished without a trace in March last year while en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing in one of the most baffling mysteries in aviation history. The plane was carrying 239 passengers and crew.
Search efforts led by Australia have focused on a broad expanse of the southern Indian Ocean off Australia, roughly 3,700 km (2,300 miles) from France’s Reunion Island.