Search and rescue officials involved in the MH370 search have said that they are quite optimistic that the debris found on the Indian Ocean Island of Reunion is that of the missing flight.

Martin Dolan, who heads Australia’s search efforts, also said that the operation was continuing “in the right place” in the southern part of the ocean.

The wreckage, said to be a wing part, is to be flown to France for analysis.

The Malaysia Airlines flight – a Boeing 777 travelling from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing – vanished in March 2014.

There were 239 passengers and crew on board when the MH370 went missing.

Aviation experts who have studied photos of the debris said that it resembles a flaperon – a moving part of the wing surface – from a Boeing 777.

“There is no other recorded case of a flaperon being lost from a Boeing 777,” Mr Dolan said.

“We are confident we have the quality of the search to cover that area and find the missing aircraft,” he added.