The ‘pings’ at the centre of the search for missing flight MH370 are no longer thought to have been from the aircraft’s black box.
Search teams scoured a location 1,600km off Australia’s northwest coast after four ‘pings’ were heard which were believed to be from the onboard data recorder.
But according to Michael Dean, the US Navy’s deputy director of ocean engineering, authorities now believe the noises came from another ‘manmade source’ .
Speaking to CNN, Mr Dean said: "Our best theory at this point is that (the pings were) likely some sound produced by the ship … or within the electronics of the Towed Pinger Locator."
He also said that if the pings had come from the plane’s flight recorders then searchers would have found them and confirmed other countries agreed with his theory.
Australian officials confirmed that the Bluefin-21 submersible robot had finished its search of the area and found nothing, said Australian officials.
A statement from the Joint Agency Co-ordination Centre (JACC) said: "The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) has advised that the search in the vicinity of the acoustic detections can now be considered complete and in its professional judgement, the area can now be discounted as the final resting place of MH370."
