MH370, Puingnya Diduga Hanyut ke Pantai Australia Barat
Pieces of Wreckage from MH370 May Have Washed Ashore in Western Australia
Editor : Ismail Gani
Translator : Novita Cahyadi
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Canberra (B2B) - Badan Keselamatan Transportasi Australia (ATSB) sedang menyelidiki apakah puing pesawat yang terdampar di sebuah pantai sekitar 10 km dari arah timur kota Augusta di Australia Barat sore tadi merupakan bagian dari pesawat hilang Malaysia Airlines MH370.
Juru bicara ATSB membenarkan kepada thewest.com.au bahwa puing pesawat tersebut memang objek menarik. ATSB telah mengirimkan foto-foto mengenai puing tersebut kepada pihak berwenang Malaysia dan Boeing untuk dianalisis.
Ketua Komisaris ATSB Martin Dolan menyebut objek tersebut berbentuk lembaran logam dengan paku keling (rivet).
Kepada CNN, seorang sumber pada Angkatan Bersenjata Australia menyebut objek itu mempunyai paku keling pada salah satu sisinya dan tampak seperti mantel serat kaca.
"Sumber tersebut menggambarkan benda ini sebagai persegi panjang, namun telah terkoyak dan rusak," lapor CNN.
Puing tersebut diambil dan kemudian disimpan di kantor polisi Busselton setelah seorang warga setempat dilaporkan menemukannya Rabu sore waktu Australia.
Polisi mengabadikan objek tersebut dan mengirimkannya kepada Otorita Keselamatan Maritim Australia (AMSA) yang kemudian diteruskan kepada ATSB.
Puing itu masih disimpan di kantor polisi Busselton, namun akan segera diserahkan kepada AMSA.
"Material sita itu akan tetap dalam penguasaan kami sampai ATSB memberi arahan lebih jauh," kata juru bicara Kepolisian West Australia Samuel Dinnison seperti dikutip laman The West Australian.
Juru bicara ATSB tidak membenarkan atau membantah puing tersebut dari MH370.
Canberra - The Australian Transport Safety Bureau is investigating a piece of debris picked up 10km east of Augusta this afternoon.
An ATSB spokesman confirmed to thewest.com.au that the piece of debris was interesting and the bureau was passing on photographs to Malaysian authorities and Boeing for analysis.
ATSB chief commissioner Martin Dolan said the object appeared to be sheet metal with rivets, CNN reported.
An Australian Defence Force source told told CNN that the object had rivets on one side, and what appeared to be a fiberglass coating.
"When asked about the shape and scale of the object, the source described it as 'kind of rectangular', but torn and misshapen," CNN reported.
The debris was picked up and handed in at Busselton police station. It is believed that a local man found the possible plane wreckage.
Police officers photographed it and sent the images to the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, who forwarded them to ATSB.
The debris is still at Busselton police station, but will be handed over to AMSA tonight.
"The seized material will remain in our possession until the ATSB provide further direction," WA Police spokesman Samuel Dinnison said this evening.
The ATSB spokesman would neither confirm nor deny that the debris was from MH370, which disappeared nearly seven weeks ago carrying 239 passengers and crew.
