Australian Authorities Say MH370 Likely Downed By 'Fuel Exhaustion'

Authorities in Australia have said that the Malaysia Airlines plane that went missing in 2014 while traveling from Malaysia to Beijing likely suffered from fuel exhaustion.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau said in a recent statement that investigation into the MH370 plane's disappearance leads them to believe that at least one of the plane's engines suffered a "flame out."

The ATSB said in its statement that analysis of the plane's satellite position and final communications led them to determine that the passenger aircraft likely suffered from engine failure. 

"It is likely that the right engine flamed out first followed by the left engine," ATSB said in its report, as reported by the International Business Times. The report added that the aircraft "could have continued to run for up to 15 minutes after the right engine flamed out."

Also this week, Australian Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss said in a statement that new research indicates that search teams are likely searching in the right area for the missing plane.

"The new research released today further emphasizes that we are searching in the right direction," Truss said.

Truss added that search teams are turning their focus to the southern most part of the previous search plan in the Indian Ocean.

The deputy prime minister added during the press conference that the search was unlikely to continue past next June.

"We've made no commitments beyond (the designated search zone). But at the last meeting of ministers the understanding was that the probability of us finding the aircraft outside of that square was low and therefore further search effort in the absence of new information was not likely to be cost-effective," Truss said.