Flight MH370 Update: Malaysia Confirms More Suspected Plane Debris Recovered In South Africa

Malaysia announced Tuesday that another piece of suspected plane debris was found in South Africa as authorities searched coastal areas for potential wreckage of missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370. The news comes as authorities continue to determine the origin of debris found in Mozambique in March.

Malaysian Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai said that it is too early to confirm if the new debris belonged to the Boeing 777-200, which went missing on March 8, 2014, with 239 people on board while on its way from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.

“We first need to check if the debris belonged to a Boeing 777 plane,” Liow said, according to the Straits Times.

Last week, Australian government investigators completed their analysis of the two debris pieces found on a sandbank in the Mozambique Channel, the ocean strait between Mozambique and Madagascar. Authorities said that the debris “is almost certainly” from the Flight MH370.

Also last week, another debris item was discovered on a beach near Mossel Bay, a town in a Western Cape province in South Africa. Australian authorities said Wednesday that the part was "suspected to be the cowling from an engine."

A multimillion-dollar search for Flight MH370 has been continuing in the southern Indian Ocean, with 9,652 sq. miles of the total 46,332 sq. miles left to be scoured. Authorities earlier said that the underwater search will be called off in June if no wreckage is found.

The search for the Malaysian airliner, which has been ongoing for more than two years, has cost the Malaysian government nearly $70 million, Sky News Australia reported Monday.