Subscribe free to our newsletters via your
. 24/7 Space News .




AEROSPACE
No known link between towelette found in Australia and MH370
by Staff Writers
Sydney (AFP) March 10, 2015


A Malaysia Airlines towelette was found on a Western Australian beach four months after MH370 vanished, investigators revealed Tuesday, but they said it was impossible to know if it came from the missing plane.

Flight MH370 disappeared on March 8, 2014 with 239 people on board and no sign of the aircraft has ever been found. It is thought to have gone down in the Indian Ocean off Australia's west coast.

It emerged that a towelette -- a wet wipe usually served on board with drinks or meals -- with the Malaysia Airlines logo was discovered on a beach at Thirsty Point, some 200 kilometres (124 miles) north of Perth.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB), which is leading the underwater search for the plane, has previously looked at items washed up on beaches in Australia's west but none have ever shed light on what happened -- and it said the towelette was no different.

"A 6cm x 8cm moist towelette in wrapping branded with the Malaysia Airlines logo was found at Thirsty Point on 2 July 2014. It was handed in to the Western Australian police," the bureau said in a statement after the discovery was reported by Australian media.

"It is unlikely, however, that such a common item with no unique identifier could be conclusively linked with MH370."

One year on, mystery continues to surround the fate of the Boeing 777-200 aircraft that disappeared from air traffic control radar after taking off from Kuala Lumpur on a flight to Beijing.

Analysis of satellite data later revealed it flew for more than six hours after contact was lost, and suggested it crashed into the southern Indian Ocean after running out of fuel.

Malaysia's handling of the disaster has been criticised from the start and an interim investigation report released Sunday uncovered a dud beacon battery and more potential missed opportunities to track the plane.

However, the airline said the battery on the separate cockpit voice recorder -- good for 30 days once activated -- was up-to-date and would have transmitted a signal once it hit water.

- 'Families deserve answers' -

Sunday's report said investigators had probed a range of issues including the personal, psychological and financial profiles of the jet's captain Zaharie Ahmad Shah and his co-pilot Fariq Abdul Hamid, as well as the backgrounds of the 10 cabin crew.

But although some suspicion had fallen on the cockpit crew, the report mentioned no evidence implicating either of them.

It also said that according to available data and maintenance records, nothing alarming was detected in the plane's major mechanical systems.

Australian officials have expressed cautious optimism that the plane would eventually be found, and Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss said Canberra, along with Malaysia and China, remained committed to the search.

So far more than 26,000 square kilometres -- over 40 percent -- of the priority zone of the seabed where the plane likely went down has been searched using specialist equipment.

"The families deserve answers and we are doing all we can to get them," Truss said.

Searchers hope to have completed the designated underwater search area by May.


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


.


Related Links
Aerospace News at SpaceMart.com






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle




Memory Foam Mattress Review
Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily
XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News





AEROSPACE
Airlines need to improve despite 'safest' year: IATA chief
Hong Kong (AFP) March 9, 2015
Last year was the safest ever for commercial aviation despite high-profile incidents such as the disappearance of Flight MH370, but the industry is still working on new technologies to improve its record, IATA chief said Monday. While more people died in air accidents in 2014 than in previous years, the rate of fatalities per flight dropped to its lowest point on record, the aviation body sa ... read more


AEROSPACE
Core work: Iron vapor gives clues to formation of Earth and moon

Application of laser microprobe technology to Apollo samples refines lunar impact history

NASA releases video of the far side of the Moon

US Issuing Licenses for Mineral Mining on Moon

AEROSPACE
Single Site on Mars Advanced for 2016 NASA Lander

Testing to Diagnose Power Event in Mars Rover

New Flight Software to Fix Memory Issues is Onboard Rover

Curiosity confirms methane in Mars' atmosphere

AEROSPACE
Cheap yen, fading Fukushima fears lure Japan tourists

Dubai to build 'Museum of the Future'

Old-economy sectors are now tech, too: US study

Diamantino Sforza - Gentleman Farmer of Prince George's County

AEROSPACE
China at technical preparation stage for Mars, asteroid exploration

China's moon rover Yutu functioning but stationary

Argentina welcomes first Chinese satellite tracking station outside China

More Astronauts for China

AEROSPACE
US astronauts speed through spacewalk at orbiting lab

Watching Alloys Change from Liquid to Solid Could Lead to Better Metals

NASA Hopes to Continue Cooperation on ISS Until 2024

Russia to use International Space Station till 2024

AEROSPACE
Soyuz Installed at Baikonur, Expected to Launch Wednesday

Arianespace certified to ISO 50001 at Guiana Space Center

SpaceX launches two communications satellites

Next Launch of Heavy Angara-5 Rocket Due Next Year

AEROSPACE
Exorings on the Horizon

Planet 'Reared' by Four Parent Stars

Planets Can Alter Each Other's Climates over Eons

The mystery of cosmic oceans and dunes

AEROSPACE
Google gearing Android for virtual reality: report

New paint makes tough self-cleaning surfaces

Video game makers grapple with need for diversity

Biomolecular force generation based on the principle of a gas spring




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2014 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement All images and articles appearing on Space Media Network have been edited or digitally altered in some way. Any requests to remove copyright material will be acted upon in a timely and appropriate manner. Any attempt to extort money from Space Media Network will be ignored and reported to Australian Law Enforcement Agencies as a potential case of financial fraud involving the use of a telephonic carriage device or postal service.