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| Version 7 | Version 8 |
|---|---|
| MH370: French experts start examining Reunion wing part | MH370: French experts start examining Reunion wing part |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Experts in France have begun examining an aircraft part that washed up on the Indian Ocean island of Reunion last week to see if it is from Flight MH370. | Experts in France have begun examining an aircraft part that washed up on the Indian Ocean island of Reunion last week to see if it is from Flight MH370. |
| The wing fragment, known as a flaperon, is from a Boeing 777, the same make as the missing Malaysian airliner. | The wing fragment, known as a flaperon, is from a Boeing 777, the same make as the missing Malaysian airliner. |
| France has invited Malaysian and Australian aviation experts to Balma to help with the investigation. | France has invited Malaysian and Australian aviation experts to Balma to help with the investigation. |
| Australia's Deputy PM Warren Truss said the teams may be able to say this week if it came from the plane. | Australia's Deputy PM Warren Truss said the teams may be able to say this week if it came from the plane. |
| Investigators have said a statement will be made later from Paris, but the degree of detail that will be released is unclear. | |
| The initial examination had been expected to last until Thursday but Malaysian officials have been on standby in Kuala Lumpur in case results come through earlier, Reuters news agency reported. | |
| For reasons that remain unclear the Malaysia Airlines plane, with 239 people on board, veered off course on its way from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing in March 2014. | For reasons that remain unclear the Malaysia Airlines plane, with 239 people on board, veered off course on its way from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing in March 2014. |
| It is believed to have crashed into the southern Indian Ocean - though no confirmed trace has ever been found despite a massive search operation. | It is believed to have crashed into the southern Indian Ocean - though no confirmed trace has ever been found despite a massive search operation. |
| The part is being examined under the direction of a judge at an aeronautical test centre run by the French military in Balma, near Toulouse. | The part is being examined under the direction of a judge at an aeronautical test centre run by the French military in Balma, near Toulouse. |
| Reunion is one of France's overseas territories. | Reunion is one of France's overseas territories. |
| French and Malaysian experts are attending, Boeing employees and representatives from China - the country that lost most passengers in the disaster. | French and Malaysian experts are attending, Boeing employees and representatives from China - the country that lost most passengers in the disaster. |
| Jean-Paul Troadec, the former head of the French BEA agency that investigates air accidents, told AFP news agency that the examination would concentrate on two issues - whether the part belongs to MH370 and if so, whether it could provide any information on the final moments of the plane. | Jean-Paul Troadec, the former head of the French BEA agency that investigates air accidents, told AFP news agency that the examination would concentrate on two issues - whether the part belongs to MH370 and if so, whether it could provide any information on the final moments of the plane. |
| Mr Troadec said paint on the wing part - which has already been confirmed as coming from a Boeing 777 plane - was a vital part of the investigation. | Mr Troadec said paint on the wing part - which has already been confirmed as coming from a Boeing 777 plane - was a vital part of the investigation. |
| "Every airline paints their planes in a certain way... and if the paint used is used by Malaysia Airlines and other companies, there may be more certainty," he said. | "Every airline paints their planes in a certain way... and if the paint used is used by Malaysia Airlines and other companies, there may be more certainty," he said. |
| Serial numbers will also be searched for and barnacles on the debris examined. | Serial numbers will also be searched for and barnacles on the debris examined. |
| No other Boeing 777s are thought to have crashed in the region. | No other Boeing 777s are thought to have crashed in the region. |
| Reunion's remarkable find | Reunion's remarkable find |
| Could plane debris be MH370? | Could plane debris be MH370? |
| MH370 relatives react to debris find | MH370 relatives react to debris find |
| Missing Malaysia plane: What we know | Missing Malaysia plane: What we know |
| Mr Troadec cautioned that the analysis was highly unlikely to give any clues as to why the plane went off course. | Mr Troadec cautioned that the analysis was highly unlikely to give any clues as to why the plane went off course. |
| "One should not expect miracles," he said. | "One should not expect miracles," he said. |
| An Australian-led search for the plane has focused on a vast area of the southern Indian Ocean about 4,000km (2,500 miles) east of Reunion. | An Australian-led search for the plane has focused on a vast area of the southern Indian Ocean about 4,000km (2,500 miles) east of Reunion. |
| Simulation of where debris in search area could end up | Simulation of where debris in search area could end up |