Black box still key to unfolding MH370 mysteries

With airplane debris discovered on Reunion Island confirmed Thursday to be from the missing Malaysian Airlines flight MH370, an aviation security expert said future search mission should still center on finding the black box.

Graham Braithwaite, aviation security expert at Britain's Cranfield University, told Xinhua that the search for the black box is still the core objective, as the data within it is key to solving all the mysteries.

In fact, given that such a long time has passed, precisely locating the black box is already too hard, Braithwaite said, but the discovery of the debris at least indicates that the search is in correct direction, and it may also dismiss those wild conspiracy theories."

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak on Thursday "conclusively confirmed" that the debris found on Reunion Island is from the missing plane MH370.

Although the cautiously-chosen wording of "strong indications" may show the meticulous attitudes of the French investigators toward the examination they are undertaking, the tragic crash and disintegration of the passenger jet into the Indian Ocean is almost a painstaking truth.

Upon Thursday's confirmation, Australia, the country that now leads the international search team, vowed it would continue the search efforts and maintain "a crucial role", according to Australian Deputy Prime Minister Warrent Truss.

Braithwaite suggested that Australia expand its current search area and called for a concerted effort that involves assistance from Malaysia, Britain, China and the International Maritime Satellite Organization.

Acknowledging the immense human and material costs and huge challenges posed by the ever-changing maritime conditions, the professor said that the search in the Indian Ocean must carry on, and that continuing the search for more debris in the environs of Reunion Island still has significant implications for the overall search mission.

Families of the passengers on board the missing plane all have the right to know the truth about the accident. Meanwhile, the aviation industry also needs to know what led to the plane's crash so as to better prevent similar accidents from happening again, Braithwaite said.

The battery of flight MH370's black box, made by the U.S. firm Honeywell Aerospace, is designed to be able to last for 30 days and the cause of the tragedy may never be solved as long as the black box remains unfound.
  Xinhua - china.org.cn
7/8/15
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