Australia says possible MH370 debris found on Mauritius

Australia's transport minister Sunday said new debris found on the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius would be examined to see if it belonged to MH370, just weeks after two Mozambique fragments were linked to the missing flight.
The debris was found on the Mauritius island of Rodrigues by a vacationing couple, news.com.au reported citing Reunion island website Clicanoo.
"The Malaysian government is working with officials from Mauritius to seek to take custody of the debris and arrange for its examination," Australian Transport Minister Darren Chester said.
"This debris is an item of interest however until the debris has been examined by experts it is not possible to ascertain its origin."
However, it remains unclear which country would examine the debris.
Aviation expert Don Thompson told the Australian news website the fragment could be the internal bulkhead from the Malaysia Airlines' Boeing 777 business or economy class cabin.
The latest discovery came less than two weeks after Australian and Malaysian authorities said two pieces of debris found in Mozambique were "almost certainly from MH370".
Another fragment picked up near Mossel Bay, a small town in Western Cape province in South Africa, would also be analysed to see if it came from MH370, South African officials said last month.
Before the latest discoveries, only a wing part recovered from the Indian Ocean island of Reunion, which lies east of Mozambique and neighbours Mauritius, had been confirmed as coming from the jet that disappeared two years ago.
Australia is leading the search for MH370 in the remote Indian Ocean, where the Kuala Lumpur-Beijing flight is believed to have diverted when it disappeared on March 8, 2014 carrying 239 passengers and crew.
Chester added that authorities "remain hopeful the aircraft will be found". More than 95,000 square kilometres (36,700 square miles) of the target zone of 120,000 square kilometres has been scoured so far, but no crash site has been found.
The governments of Australia, China and Malaysia have said they will end the hunt when the target area is fully searched unless new, credible information emerges.

TEARS AND EMOTIONS AS FAMILIES MARK 2ND YEAR OF MH370 DISAPPEARANCE

Family members and friends of the victims of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 gathered Tuesday in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and Beijing to mark the second anniversary of the Boeing 777's mysterious disappearance and support the arduous search for the plane and their loved ones.
In Beijing, some supporters held a protest near the Malaysia embassy, shouting slogans and demanding more information about the disaster. Others gathered at a temple to pray, burn incense and mourn.
In Kuala Lumpur, several loved ones wore "search on" shirts and released balloons. The Malaysian Parliament also showed support, offering a minute of silence, and Prime Minister Najib Razak released a statement assuring the families that "we remain committed to doing everything within our means to solving what is an agonizing mystery."
Razak noted that a piece of wing found on the island of Reunion last year confirmed his assertions that the plane was lost somewhere in a vast expanse of the Indian Ocean. All 239 people aboard the Beijing-bound flight from Kuala Lumpur are presumed dead.
"Amidst some of the world’s most inhospitable terrain – at depths of up to six kilometers (about 3.5 miles), across underwater mountain ranges, and in the world’s fastest currents – the search team have been working tirelessly to find MH370’s resting place. We are grateful for their efforts," he said.
He also touched on a recurring theme in recent weeks that has stressed the families: When the search might end.
Razak said searchers remain hopeful they will find the wreckage in an area of more than 10,000 square miles now being scanned, a process expected to be completed by summer. "If it is not, then Malaysia, Australia and China will hold a tripartite meeting to determine the way forward," he said. Australian officials have said that most likely will mean an end to the search, estimated to have cost more than $130 million.
Without the wreckage or the black boxes, investigators have been unable to determine whether mechanical problem or pilot error caused the crash. And it's location has been estimated based on hourly, automated satellite contacts that indicate the plane flew for hours after losing contact with controllers.
Grace Nathan, whose mother Anne Daisy was on the flight, told the BBC that discussions about ending the search are painful to the loved ones.
"I understand from a logical standpoint what they are saying, that the funds are dwindling, that they've looked very thoroughly in this space," Nathan said. "But for me it is very important to find the plane. Not just for our own emotional reasons and our need for closure, but I believe the flying public also needs to know what happened.

MH370: Last Call For Next-of-kins To File Claims Today

The MH370 next-of-kins will lose the right to file claims if they fail to do so by today, said Transport Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai.

He said as long as the next-of-kin filed in under the Montreal Convention latest by today, the government would continue to work closely with them on the compensation and the Malaysian Airline System Berhad (MAS) had been directed to complete the compensation as fast as possible.

"So this is the reason why before the two years was up, we had been calling the next-of-kin to file in the claims as soon as possible... Malaysia is signatory to the convention (Montreal Convention), so we have to follow the convention," he told the media at the Dewan Rakyat lobby, today.

Liow pointed out that over the past two years Malaysia had never given up, but was committed on putting a lot of resources, time and efforts to look for the missing flight.

"We continue to be committed and we hope that we can cover the 120,000 sq km search area, within the time stipulated by June this year and we hope we can find the flight MH370," he said.

Meanwhile, Liow said the object found on the sandbank in Mozambique and believed to be part of the missing aircraft was now in Malaysia's custody.

"Our team is already in Mozambique, we were given the green light to collect the debris and it is now in our custody...and we will verify the debris as soon as possible," he said while mentioning that Malaysia was working together with Australia in identifying the debris.

On the latest discovery of the second object at Reunion Island yesterday, Liow said Malaysia was waiting for a judge in France to decide whether Malaysia could collect the debris, or it had to remain in France.