The crash area for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 may have been identified by a Chinese government satellite.
Malaysia Airlines: Location near area of last confirmed radio contact
The area in question is in the South China Sea northeast of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and south of Vietnam, not far from the last confirmed radio contact. According to China’s State Administration for Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense, which announced the discovery, three images were identified that it said were “three suspected floating objects.” The objects are rather large, at 13 by 18 meters (43 by 59 feet), 14 by 19 meters and 24 by 22 meters. It accurate, the location would also corroborate with a claim from an oil rig worker who claimed he saw a plane on fire over the South China Sea, southeast of Vietnam.
Ships are currently in route to confirm the plane’s location.
The satellite images were captured on March 9, the day following the plane’s disappearance, but weren’t released until Wednesday, according to a CNN report.
“At this stage in the investigation and search and rescue, I would have expected to see by now a much more defined understanding of what the route was, where the plane was headed and a narrowing of the search consequent upon that,” Richard Quest, CNN’s aviation expert, said on “New Day.”
Safety alert did not apply to Malaysian airliner
In other developments, the Guardian is reporting that Boeing has confirmed it issued a safety alert in June last year for Boeing 777s, telling airlines to check for cracks in the fuselage around a satellite antenna, according to the report. The FAA in the US has issued a directive for repairs to be carried out. Boeing says the 777-200ER Malaysia Airlines aircraft did not have that antenna installed and was not subject to the FAA order. Reuters later reported it would not have affected the Malaysia jet.
Boeing said it worked closely with the FAA to monitor the fleet for potential safety issues and take appropriate actions. But it said the 777-200ER Malaysia Airlines aircraft did not have that antenna installed and was not subject to the FAA order.