Two pieces of debris recovered from beaches in Mozambique — one found in December and the other in February — almost certainly came from missing Malaysia Airlines flight 370, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau said Tuesday.
“Part No. 1 was a flap track fairing segment, almost certainly from the Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 aircraft, registered 9M-MRO,” the Safety Bureau report said of the piece found December 27.
The second piece of debris was found February 27, approximately 135 miles (220 kilometers) from the spot where the first item was discovered.
“Part No. 2 was a horizontal stabilizer panel segment, almost certainly from the Malaysian Airlines Boeing 777 aircraft, registered 9M-MRO,” the report said.
Darren Chester, Australian minister for infrastructure and transport, said he “welcomed” the report.
“Stenciling on both parts of debris provided investigators with evidence of the link. The font and color of a number stenciled on the first part conforms to that developed and used by Malaysian Airlines,” he said.
“I thank the team from ATSB, Geoscience Australia, Boeing and the Australian National University for their work.”
Chester also announced the successful recovery of a “towfish” sonar drogue, which will be redeployed in the search area, a final 20,000 square kilometer area in the Indian Ocean some 2000 kilometers (1200 miles) off the west coast of Australia.
MH370’s disappearance is one of the world’s biggest aviation mysteries. The plane vanished from radar on March 8, 2014 while en route from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to Beijing, with 239 people on board.