The discovery of a Boeing 777 flaperon on Reunion Island has vaulted Malaysian Airlines flight 370's disappearance into world headlines again, but is intensive media interest bringing us closer to the truth?
For example, some experts have attributed the flaperon's good condition to a gentle ocean splashdown, while others say it likely snapped off in a steep, violent descent.
"It's very difficult to draw any conclusions about what this particular piece means in the context of where the airplane is exactly or how it broke up," airlineratings.com aviation expert Geoffrey Thomas says.
"There are people who postulate all sorts of theories including that the pilot glided the plane in for a perfect landing and then sank it deliberately.
"But in the southern ocean, calm is a three-metre swell, so this isn't a 'miracle on the Hudson' scenario.
"Really all this does is to dispel conspiracy theories about the plane being secretly flown to Russia or Afghanistan."
04/08/15 Rob Payne/Phy.org
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For example, some experts have attributed the flaperon's good condition to a gentle ocean splashdown, while others say it likely snapped off in a steep, violent descent.
"It's very difficult to draw any conclusions about what this particular piece means in the context of where the airplane is exactly or how it broke up," airlineratings.com aviation expert Geoffrey Thomas says.
"There are people who postulate all sorts of theories including that the pilot glided the plane in for a perfect landing and then sank it deliberately.
"But in the southern ocean, calm is a three-metre swell, so this isn't a 'miracle on the Hudson' scenario.
"Really all this does is to dispel conspiracy theories about the plane being secretly flown to Russia or Afghanistan."
04/08/15 Rob Payne/Phy.org
