Wreckage 'conclusively confirmed' as from MH370: Malaysia PM

KUALA LUMPUR: Debris found on an Indian Ocean island a week ago is from flight MH370, Malaysia's prime minister announced on Wednesday, confirming for the first time that the plane which mysteriously disappeared 17 months ago had crashed.

"Today, 515 days since the plane disappeared, it is with a very heavy heart that I must tell you that an international team of experts has conclusively confirmed that the aircraft debris found on Reunion Island is indeed from MH370," Prime Minister Najib Razak told reporters.

The Malaysia Airlines jet disappeared on March 8 last year, inexplicably veering off course en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 people on board, sparking a colossal but ultimately fruitless multinational hunt for the aircraft.

Last week´s discovery of a two-metre-long (almost seven-foot) wing part called a flaperon on the French island of La Reunion has provided the first glimmer of hope for relatives desperate for answers.

The part was examined at a military lab outside the city of Toulouse in the presence of French, Malaysian and Australian experts, Boeing employees and representatives from China -- the country that lost the most passengers in the disaster.

"We now have physical evidence that, as I announced on 24th March last year, flight MH370 tragically ended in the southern Indian Ocean," said Najib.

But next-of-kin, investigators, and the aviation industry are still left with the vexing question of what caused the plane to veer off course, flying for hours after its communications and tracking systems were shut off, in what remains one of the biggest mysteries in the history of aviation.

Najib gave no indication that the analysis of the debris yielded any clues into the cause of the disappearance.

"I would like to assure all those affected by this tragedy that the government of Malaysia is committed to do everything within our means to find out the truth of what happened," he said.

"MH370´s disappearance marked us as a nation. We mourn with you, as a nation."

Many relatives accuse Malaysia´s government and the airline of a bungled response to the disaster, possible cover-up, and insensitive treatment of families, charges that are vehemently denied.

- Paint, traces of explosion? -

Jean-Paul Troadec, former chief of France´s BEA agency that probes air accidents, had earlier said the paint on the piece was a key element of the probe.

"Every airline paints their planes in a certain way," he said. "If the paint used is used by Malaysia Airlines... there may be more certainty."

It is hoped that more detailed examination in the coming days can yield information on the final moments of the plane by showing how it detached itself from the wing, or whether it showed traces of an explosion or fire.

Scientists have also pointed to the barnacles attached to the flaperon, saying these could give an idea of how long the piece had been in the water, and perhaps where it had been.

"If it has cold-water barnacles on it that might tell them it went down further south than they think. Or if it´s got only tropical barnacles, that might tell them it went down further north," said Shane Ahyong, a crustacean specialist from the Australian Museum.

- No ´miracles´ -

Troadec had earlier warned that the analysis was highly unlikely to give any clues as to why the plane mysteriously diverted off course.

"One should not expect miracles," he said.

But for the victims´ loved ones, any tangible piece of information is likely to help them in seeking closure, according to psychologist Carole Damiani, who specialises in helping the families of people who died in disasters.

"The grieving process is about untying oneself from someone, accepting that they will not be found and they have gone forever," she said.

"When someone goes missing, it is difficult to say ´I will stop looking´," she added. "You need people to say ´he is dead, you are allowed to start the grieving process and undo this bond´."