Independent experts give their opinions on new ‘possible MH370 debris’ found in Mozambique Channel

AUSTRALIAN authorities have confirmed a piece of suspected ‘MH370 debris’ will be brought here for examination by international specialists.

Self-funded MH370 investigator and blogger Blaine Gibson poses with what he believes could be a piece of the missing plane in Mozambique.

A PIECE of “possible MH370 debris” found on a sandbank in the Mozambique Channel is in the process of being transported to Australia for further examination.

The object, believed to be from the horizontal stabiliser of an aircraft, was found by American blogger Blaine Gibson, who is conducting a private investigation into the plane’s disappearance.

“A piece of metal, approximately one metre in length, has been found on a beach in Mozambique,” The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) said in a statement this afternoon.

“The debris is to be transferred to Australia where it will be examined by officials from Australia and Malaysia, as well as international specialists.

“The location of the debris is consistent with drift modelling commissioned by ATSB and reaffirms the search area for MH370 in the southern Indian Ocean.”

Like their Australian counterparts, Malaysian officials have expresed optimism about the find, with transport minister Liow Tiong Lai tweeting that, based on early reports, there was a “high possibility debris found in Mozambique belongs to a B777”.

This contrasts with the opinions of independent aviation experts who privately viewed images and video of the part on Mr Gibson’s Facebook page over the weekend and believe it is unlikely to have come from MH370.

The part, which has been described as a “fibreglass skin aluminium honeycomb cored panel” with no identifying features other than the printed words “NO STEP”, will now be examined by Malaysian and Australian authorities.

Blaine Gibson with the suspected aircraft horizontal stabiliser, which is being investigated for links to MH370, near where he found the object. The words ‘NO STEP’ can clearly be seen along one edge.

The underside of the suspected plane part

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Several aviation specialists, including members of the Independent Group (IG) and controversial journalist Jeff Wise took to Reddit to share their opinions on the origin of the part.

The overwhelming consensus appears to be that it is unlikely to have come from the missing Boeing 777, which vanished with 239 people on board en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on March 8, 2014.

IG member Don Thompson said in his opinion the component was not consistent with one that would be found on a Boeing 777.

“The found item is an aluminium honeycomb panel and, as such, is not a construction that is consistent with composite components employed on a B777,” he posted to Reddit.

“Neither did it look like it had been in the ocean for 2 yrs, or even lying on a sandbar where allegedly found as there was no sign of sand filling the honeycomb structure.”

A close up view of the composite, which has the words ‘NO STEPS’ printed on it. Picture: ATSB

Material inconsistent w a B777 part, but concluding that even if from #9MMRO "they don't help" is quite correct. https://t.co/nEMXpByLj0

— Don Thompson (@GuardedDon) March 2, 2016

Fellow IG member Victor Iannello also commented that the part did not look as if it had been in the sea for that long but was undecided about the type of plane it had come from.

“I was struck by the condition of the part,” Dr Iannello wrote.

”It had no barnacles, little or no algae, and no water line. The condition of the part was nothing like the flaperon that was recovered. As (Don Thompson) said, the construction is composite skin with aluminum honeycomb core, which leads him to believe it is not from a B777.

“I have not been able to identify a part on the B777 of similar construction, but I don’t have access to all the drawings of a B777, so I can’t say for certain that it is not from a B777.”

To date, only one piece of debris, a wing part known as a flaperon, has been confirmed to have come from MH370. It washed up on a beach in La Reunion on the Indian Ocean last July and was analysed by French specialists but those findings have yet to be made public.

Mr Gibson’s find comes just days before the second anniversary the plane’s disappearance, when Malaysia will also release its much anticipated report on the investigation.

Meanwhile, Australian authorities are due to end their search of the southern Indian Ocean in early July, although there are at least two crowdfunding campaigns underway to move it elsewhere.

Here's hoping debris found in #Mozambique is part of #MH370 horizontal stabiliser from missing Boeing 777. #Malaysia pic.twitter.com/i8PPZbDRaZ

— Anthony Davis (@theanthonydavis) March 2, 2016

A map of the spot Gibson where Gibson claims to have found the suspected plane part in the Mozambique Channel. Picture: AFP