DEBRIS NOT FROM MH370

Pieces in Seychelles neither from Boeing 777 nor a RollsRoyce engine

TWO pieces of debris, found washed up on the Farquhar Atoll Island in Seychelles, which appeared to be from an aircraft, did not come from a Boeing 777.

Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) director-general Datuk Seri Azharuddin Abdul Rahman dismissed the possibility that the debris found could have been from the missing Malaysia Airlines Flight, MH370.

“We have communicated with the Seychelles Civil Aviation Authority (SCAA), which notified us of their findings. They have sent us their report along with five images of the debris found.

“It was found that the debris did not come from a Boeing 777, hence ruling out the possibility that it came from the lost plane,” he told the New Straits Times yesterday.

The MH370 investigation team had determined that the debris neither came from a Boeing 777 nor a Rolls-Royce engine.

“We would (however) like to thank our colleagues at Seychelles Civil Aviation Authority for their cooperation,” he said.

The SCAA was made aware of the debris that had washed ashore by scientists researching birds and turtles on the North Island on Tuesday.

Reuters quoted a senior SCAA official as saying the way the sea currents flowed did not rule out the possibility that the debris could have come from the general direction of the area where MH370 was believed to have crashed.

Michael Payet, a spokesman for the state agency that manages all Seychelles islands, said that the largest of the two debris was about 120cm long and 30cm wide, appeared to be made of aluminium and carbon fibre and could have been part of an engine cover.

Farquhar Atoll Island is located more than 700km southwest of the main island, Mahe. It is the southernmost atoll of the Seychelles.

MH370 went off radar on March 8, 2014, about an hour into a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 passengers and crew on board.