MH 370 : CHINA FOUND WING OF AIRLINER?

CANBERRA, March 22  -- The object spotted by a Chinese satellite may be a wing of an airliner, John Blaxland, a senior fellow from Australian National University (ANU) said in a telephone interview with Xinhua on Saturday.

Dr. Blaxland, from ANU's Strategic and Defense Studies Center, said if the measurements of 22 meters long and 13 meters wide are correct, they are more consistent with a wing of a Boeing 777 airliner.

Asked about whether the newly spotted object would be the one spotted in an earlier satellite image, Blaxland said they don't seem to be the same object.

"It's similar shaped, but if the measurements (are correct), then this is slightly wider," he said.

He called it a significant finding, because that would not be a container.

Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) earlier released satellite photos showing an object of 24 meters long, which becomes the "best lead" so far to find the missing Malaysian Airline MH370.

The Chinese government released a satellite photo taken on March 18. The object is said to be 120 km west to the object spotted by American satellite on March 16 which has formed the basis for the current search operation coordinated by Australia.

Blaxland said if that is the case, then the two objects are " highly unlikely" to be the same object or the two wings of the same plane because the ocean current is from west to east.

But in a later email reply to Xinhua, Blaxland said this picture suggests the new imagery is not to the west but in the south of the area currently being patrolled.

"That changes things as it is quite possible that the currents would move, in a swirling pattern, to move the object further south in to the area. If that is the case, then this very well may be the first new evidence of the same object identified on March 16. If that is the case. Tomorrow's surveillance flights will most likely be redirected onto this area," he said.

AMSA told Australian Associated Press that it's too early to say if the new imagery will alter the search patterns. But Blaxland said he suspected AMSA will be studying this very, very closely tonight and recalibrating their plan as a consequence of this information.