Possible piece of debris from MAS370 found

[SophiesDog]

Part of a wing has been found on the island of Reunion (sorry can't do accent) which is near Madagascar off Southern Africa.

Based on currents, if it is part of the plane this fits in with where they are searching though of course it could have come from a different area too.

There is a number on the part and it's all up in the air while they try and figure out if it might be part of the missing plane. Seems the right sort of size for a 777 flaperon.

Bit excited though of course it might all be for nothing.

Telegraph

[RitaKiaOra]

Thanks for this OP. I am pleased it will be closure of some sort for the relatives. I always think it's the not knowing that must be bloody awful.

[Garlick]

This is exciting! Obviously it's still gruesome, but finally some hope the story will reach an eventual conclusion.

[Polarbearpolarbear]

I really don't think that it's 'exciting!' news at all.

[SusanMichelson]

It is in the sense that hundreds of people who have been working very hard to sort the whole thing out, with almost nothing to go on, will be excited about it.

Excitement doesn't have to mean joy and pleasure, or have to involve those emotions. It really just means that people respond in an energetic manner to something they have been waiting for, or hoping for.

It's not like people have hoped to find evidence people died. They are excited to find evidence that might tell us how and where and why.

Because (probably) nearly everyone who knows about it wants to know.

[SusanMichelson]

In fact one of the guys involved in the investigation, when that piece of material containing rivets was found on an Australian beach several months ago, actually said 'the more closely we look at it, the less excited we get'.

There is probably a line that can be crossed wrt comment on this topic but to presume everyone is inappropriately joyful about this discovery is to assume lots of people are sociopaths.

I think they are just glad to have something to work with.

[FredaMayor]

An aircraft engineer friend made the point to me that the wreckage has shown a part number but not a serial number yet, so it has not been specifically identified as coming from a particular plane. It seems that parts (such as a flaperon) when damaged on a plane in service can be replaced and sent for recycling, and could have got into the sea by falling from a containership in rough seas. It could be that the wreckage is still a long way from being identified.

[SusanMichelson]

That's a good point Freda. I don't suppose he had any ideas about how the data plate could have got detached? That's a bit concerning but I'm not sure how they are attached - glue or screws.

I think the forensics people will be looking at the paint - whether it indicates a certain batch as it were - and also the manner of detachment from the wing itself, how and where the composite might have failed and so on - they should be able to tell quite a lot from this piece, such as perhaps how the plane, if it is from that plane, impacted the surface of the water.

I hope they milk it all they can.

[FredaMayor]

Susan, the engineer also said that he thought the fragment was likely to have entered the sea with the damage that we can see on the trailing edge, because of the length of time a line of one or more year-old barnacles following the raw edges would take to establish. This friend is experienced with salvage and works on large commercial aircraft, and he thinks the damage is not typical of any that he has seen on wing flaps, although that is not to say that it necessarily came about by mid-air or impact explosion.

I find it tragic that some of the families are still hoping that the plane and passengers will be found somewhere alive and well, based purely on the fact that no wreckage has yet been found. I for one would not want a cold and lonely grave at the bottom of the sea, and I do hope that this latest piece of news is going to help the dead and their families by leading the searchers to the plane, wherever it is. But sadly that may just be false hope.

[SusanMichelson]

Freda, I agree - it is really upsetting to think that they still have hope, and are unable to let it go until they have proof that their loved ones are dead.

I can't imagine that amount of pain.

Thank you for the extra information regarding the opinion of your friend. I had read similar too; also it seems that the islanders of Reunion have recovered various other parts over the past few months (blue aircraft seats, suitcases full of things) and have burned them with other rubbish.

I can't imagine how that feels to read for the families, either.
I hope more things are found now that they realise the significance.

[flatbellyfella]

They have just announced that a Door from a plane has washed up on the island.

[SusanMichelson]

No, Sky reported it initially and then changed their story to 'more debris' - photos show the police removing an item inside a small metal case (probably less than a foot square).

The object is said to be metallic with Malaysian writing on it, or something like that. I don't think it's a door.

[SusanMichelson]

though twitter and every other news site picked up the door story immediately and ran it...

[wooldonor]

I saw a story about a door washing up flash by on my facebook feed earlier but when I had time to go back and read it I couldn't find anything, I thought I must have imagined it.

How awful to think that some things may have been burnt by the islanders, hopefully a message can be got to everyone not to burn anything more.

[seaoflove]

According to the PPrune forum linked upthread, the "plane window" is actually part of a sewing machine. So lots and lots of unsubstantiated drama swirling around at the moment.

[SusanMichelson]

There are some implications though wrt the search area and drift models.

I find this the best place to look for serious analysis.

[SusanMichelson]

I wouldn't believe everything you read on the DM website