There were 227 passengers on flight MH370, many of them Chinese. Relatives of those on board who watched the announcement at a Beijing hotel wept with grief, and some were taken away on stretchers by medical teams, news agencies reported. Flight MH370 disappeared after taking off on 8 March from Kuala Lumpur.

 

A big international search operation has been taking place in the southern Indian Ocean, along the southern arc or corridor of the plane's possible route,more than 1,500 miles (2,500km) off the south-west coast of Australia.

 

In the past day, both Australian and Chinese air force crews have reported spotting debris. The unidentified objects have been seen in separate parts of the vast search area, in some of the world's most treacherous and remote waters.