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welcome back, we'd like to update you now on the breaking news. australian authorities say two objects spotted by satellite in the southern indian ocean may be related to missing malaysia airlines flight 370. john young says they're redirecting surveillance planes to the area to try to identify the debris. the largest object appears to be 79 feet, but he described it as a blob on the satellite imagery. malaysia's transport minister said families in kuala lumpur have been briefed. >> every lead is a hope and we are being very consistent. we want to verify, coberate. we're in the process of -- >> have you seen the -- >> no, i have not.

>> australia's search operations are centered just outside perth and andrew stevens joins us there live with more on this. where does the search stand right now? which planes are in the air and how far away are the naval assets? >> there's a total of four planes on this search now, john. and as we stand here, three are still in the air. the idea is to keep eyes on that site. those two objects in the deep southern indian ocean, to keep eyes on them as long as possible. at the moment, there's a us poseidon plane on that site, but they can only stay for two hours. they have to get back to base, which is a four-hour flight. so they're staggering the flights out of this base behind me at the moment on the outskirts of perth. got about five or so hours of daylight, and they'll be using every available second of daylight to try to locate these

objects, this debris. still a very difficult task. john young did keep coming back to this point, that it's still a very difficult task, not helped, john, by weather conditions there, either. poor visibility, the actual sea conditions have been described as moderate, but they're in the far southern latitudes. surface vessels also making their way to the area which has been identified as where these objects are. and australian warship has left just outside perth on its way, but that's going to take several days to get there. we do know there's commercial shipping in the region. we don't know whether any commercial ships have yet reached that zone because it's outside the far southern vector that the authorities and the satellite images and the satellites, the pings we've had to date have suggested the plane was. so it's a little bit beyond the

extreme range of that arc we talked so much about in the southern corridor. >> and if this is in fact the plane's debris, does it suggest that the plane essentially stayed in the air for its maximum fuel capacity, for the entire seven hours before coming down? >> it would suggest that, indeed. in fact, it's very difficult to read it any other way, to get that far south. what is going to be a complicating factor here is the tides. it's been 12 days now. the currents of the ocean, the tides of the ocean will have taken that material perhaps hundreds of miles from where there was, if that is indeed the debris from the plane, where the initial impact was. so they're going to have to trace that back to a zone where they think the plane hit, obviously looking at records of currents and trends, et cetera. that's going to take some time.

time, obviously remains of the essence, not only for the families, but there's a limited window in how long the locator beacons work on the plane. in the event of a catastrophe like this, they have a month's window, while those beacons continue to ping. after that, the job becomes considerably, as you'd imagine, harder. >> and if you learn anything from the air france flight which crashed in 2009, flight 447, finding the debris is really just the first initial step, the first step in what could be a very long process. >> absolutely. piecing it together, and just finding the debris, john, this is a very deep part of the world's oceans. the indian ocean averages a meters.f 12,000 feet, 4,000 this is putting it on the same sort of depth as air france, flight 447. so actually finding the zone

where they think the plane, most of the fuselage may be located, and then actually searching the seabed that far down is going to prove incredibly problematic. remember, the wreckage from air france took some two years to pull together, to piece together. then investigators have the task of working out what exactly happened. at this hour, at this day, we still can't rule anything out. you've got to keep this in mind. this is still such a wide open search and investigation. yes, there is a lead. it's described as the most positive lead, or the best lead that the australian maritime authorities have had so far. but it's just that. it's just a lead still. it's nothing more and there is still so many question marks about what happened, why, and who and how. it's going to take some time until we get some clear identification that this is linked to the plane. we could this time tomorrow be

back to square one. >> if they get out there, they see the debris, they pick it up, they look at it, how do they make that link, that what is essential lly a blob on a satellite, how do they identify it as being from flight 370? >> they'll be hoping for some sort of markings, the livery itself will be critical. they'll be looking for any sort of debris which is specific to a boeing 777. that's the sort of things they'll be looking for. there may have been certain options or modifications or whatever done by malaysia which could help identify the plane. but a lot of it is going to be just looking at it and seeing that signature. maybe it's a livery. maybe it's a life jacket maybe with malaiysian airlines on it. it's that level -- they will get the radar pictures sure, but

thigh need eyes on. that's why ships are going there. they have to get close up to that debris, they have to really investigate it to see and make that firm link, that yes, this is flight 370. >> thank you very much. just outside perth where the australians have based their operations to find this debris. the best lead they have right now, everyone waiting to find out if this is debris from flight 370 and that long wait for the relatives of malaiysia airlines flight 370 has been tearing away at all of those who are gathered in hotels around the world in malaysia and china. tensions in kuala lumpur on wednesday, when relatives demanded information and police intervened. our kyung la was there. >> reporter: one woman's desperate protest.

she wails, my son li li was on the plane. cameras roll, police and the malaysian military move in. [ crying and screaming ] >> reporter: through a crush of reporters, police forcibly carried her away from the cameras to another room. we were all here for the government's daily news conference. cue other chinese women, hold up a protest sign, crying out to the cameras. >> translator: we need the truth. and want the international media to help get information from the malaysian government. >> but police move in again. >> what are you doing? >> reporter: pushing us, forcing us out of the way. >> back up, back up! >> reporter: i'm yelling because we're getting crushed. police also carried those women away. that's just one sense of the frustration that's mounting here, not just in malaysia, but also in beijing.

families extremely distraught. they just don't know what happened to their family members. back inside the conference room, the government started its news briefing on time. referring to the women's protests only briefly. >> i fully understand what they are going through. emotions are high. >> reporter: back outside in the hallway, the door opens and closes for the police and officials. >> where is the family? >> reporter: ignoring our questions until finally -- once again, blocked by police, officials refusing to talk to us. [ shouting and screaming ] li li's mother was taken away from the building by police, we don't know where, but you could see she was still sobbing. >> after that dramatic scene, malaysia's government released a statement saying it regrets what happened.

the acting transport minister also said, quote, one can only imagine the anguish they are going through. malaysia is doing everything in its power to find mh 370 and hopefully bring some degree of closure for those whose family members are missing. he went on to say he has ordered an immediate inquiry into the event in the press room. before the news of these objects found in the southern indian oce ocean, one of the biggest developments this week had to do with the pilot's home flight simulator. coming up next, we'll focus on that part of the story. i reckon a storm's a brewin'. reckon so. reckon you gotta hotel? reckon, no. reckon priceline express deals will get you a great deal. wherever you...mosey. you reckon? we reckon.

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coming up to 3:45 on the east in the united states. quick update on malaysia airlines flight 370. australian authorities have found two objects that may be related to the plane. they were spotted by satellite

about 1,500 miles from western australia. aircraft have been sent for a closer look. malaysia's prime minister has tweeted that his government is now awaiting confirmation from australia. with that in mind, sara is live in kuala lumpur this hour to tell us more about the malaysian government's response to what could be a breakthrough in all of this. >> i think the response is extremely cautious, john. that is because, as you know, all of the different roller coasters, emotions that have been coming out of these families because information has been coming in and it's disputed sometimes hours or a day later, and it's just been very difficult for them. i think the government has sensed that and they're being very cautious. however they did have a conversation. we know the prime minister talked to the prime minister of australia, tony abbott when this all happened, before the press conference, to alert the malaysian authorities that these two objects in particular had

been found, one some 24 meters long. and so that was the information that was given to the malaysians. but the malaysians, also along with the australian authorities, saying that we have to be extremely cautious. number one, they have to be found. that's a difficulty. and number two, there is no guarantee that these are actually from flight mh 370. but this is the best lead they have so far. the malaysians are also saying, the airline saying, we're not going to send any families there and we're not going to send any representatives from the airline there at this point, until it's confirmed. until they're able to confirm that these objects are, in fact, or have something to do with this particular flight. so that's the latest from here. we've also heard from malaysian officials they are sending in six ships with three helicopters to the area, trying to get into the southern indian ocean, somewhere near where they think these objects are. of course you have australia already there, the u.s. already there and new zealand as well. >> is that an indication, sara,

that at least the malaysians are taking this seriously, they're scrambling ships, sending helicopters in, they want to be part of the search? >> i think that's absolutely clear. the australians have been very clear about this, they feel it's credible new information. those two words, i think, have had some impact. they are hoping this is indeed something to do with mh 370, but they always put the caveat in that they're going to be hard to find. it's a vast and deep ocean. and number two, they cannot be sure until they're able to look at in a closer way and also try to get a hold of these objects. whatever they are. they've got to get to them. and that's the key here. of course it's going to be getting dark not too long from now. it will make the search operations more difficult. also australia saying that it's been a bit difficult weather wise. as far as being able to see along that area where they're

looking. so those are a couple of things that are hindering, but definitely it's being taken very seriouslily by everyone who is trying to find what happened to this flight that disappeared 12 days ago. >> sara, thank you. we'd like to turn our focus to the pilot's home flight simulator and efforts to retrieve information that had been deleted. because there's been this breakthrough, possible debris found in the indian ocean, there's still this investigation as to what happened inside that cockpit. brian tart reports now from washington. >> cnn has now told u.s. law enforcement officials are examining hard drives belonging to the pilot and first officer of malaysia airlines flight 370. at the fbi's lab in quantity co-virginia, they're combing through the computers of the pilot. >> some data has been deleted from the simulator and forensic

work to retrieve it is ongoing. >> investigators aren't saying what data was deleted or who deleted it. the deletion is not necessarily evidence of ill intent. as one user said, all of us use and delete files continuously. triple 7 pilot less aben said captain shaw may have felt there's not enough area on the hard drive. he may have deleted a training exercise. >> or he may have been embarrassed with his performance on a flight simulator and didn't want a memory of that particular occurrence. >> others say the deletion of data is unusual, even suspicious. the simulator manufacturer says space shouldn't be an issue. the files are tiny. >> and if they were just in a casual flight, just for entertainment or for practice, that flight would never be saved and there's be no need to delete it because it would not exist. >> the company that makes the

software the captain use is head quartered in this building in alexandria, virginia. we tried to speak to the head of the company. we were told he wasn't available. but he posted a message on the company's web forum, saying that other than being a customer of pmdg, captain shah had no relationship with the company. also said that the captain's love of flight simulation had anything to do with the flight's disappearance is wild conjecture, insulting to captains and could damage the industry. >> if the data was deleted, how do they reconstruct it. >>? it's taking a known good image of that data, because they're familiar with the program, they have an edge. they can go in, get an overall idea of the structure of that data and what it looks like on the inside of the file. from that point, they can go on to the pilot's hard drive and search on that for the specific signatures.

>> he said they can still retrieve the deleted material, but if the simulator was used a lot during that month, it could have smudged the footprint. >> we'll have more on the search for flight 370 straight ahead. and we'll take a look at how a big plane bike th-- like that boeing 777 might have flown for hours without being constantly tracked. ike -- like that boeing 777 might have flown for hours without being constantly tracked. ke -- like that boeing 777 might have flown for hours without being constantly tracked. e -- like that boeing 777 might have flown for hours without being constantly tracked. -- like that boeing 777 might have flown for hours without being constantly tracked. -- like that boeing 777 might have flown for hours without being constantly tracked. like that boeing 777 might have flown for hours without being constantly tracked. like that boeing 777 might have flown for hours without being constantly tracked. like that boeing 777 might have flown for hours without being constantly tracked.

surprisingly, it's not the only way for a 777 to avoid detection. >> how likely is it that this flight was able to elude radar just by accident? >> highly unlikely. >> air traffic control experts use state of the art simulators to teach the next generation of controllers how to interpret the flood of data coming in. >> you know where it is?

>> but that only works if the transponder is turned on. >> sid spent 35 years in air traffic control for the faa and four years in the air force, guiding flights under fire in vietnam. he says without the plane's transponder, aircraft traffic control is almost blind. >> this is what a flight looks like with the transponder on? >> correct. >> when the transponder is on, a data tag is very obvious. the pilot can use it to report an emergency. >> the letters hijk mean hijack. >> so without saying a word, the pilot can tell you he's been hijacked. >> that's correct. >> but the transponder has to be on? >> the transponder has to be on. >> the flight never reported a problem. when the transponder went off, there's nothing left but a tiny speck of light that even a

trained eye would not recognize right away as even an airplane. >> this could be a target. this could be a target here. >> you don't know for sure. >> we don't know for sure. i'd have to concentrate on that particular piece of data. >> and in the wee hours of the morning when the flight vanished a tiny speck of light could have traveled to destinations unknown without attracting attention. >> we're at home in bed asleep. >> he's not looking for any surprises? >> not looking for any surprises. >> just one more theory in an increasingly vexing case. a 777 disappears by hiding in plain sight. david mattingly, cnn. >> we've heard from australian thrds that visibility in this newly defined search area is poor. let's do a weather check. you've been looking at where this plane started, how much

fuel it has in relation to the area they're searching for debris. >> it's a fascinating point. if this is the debris, does that imply it flew some seven hours? we calculated the last latitude and longitude of the aircraft. you go seven hours south, cruising 550 miles per hour, 900 kilometers per hour, guess what that takes you, seven hours later it takes you in that newly refined search zone to the south, exactly where the debris was coming from. this is about 1,500 miles off the coast of australia where we're looking at. but the storm system in place across this region, beginning to exit the region. take you well to the south, here's the cold front beginning to push through. the area where they spotted the debris, in that zone where the storm was passing in the past couple of hours. we know beyond this, weather conditions expected to improve over the next couple days. but lastly, something important

to note in this region. this is known as the indian ocean jir. one of three jirs that is home to a substantial area of a garbage patch. historically this area is known to trap millions of tons of debris, a lot of times being very small, confetti-like in nature, not to say that a large item could not be found. but this region has been knowned to trap debris and the currents are very slow. >> good to know. thank you for joining us for this special edition of cnn newsro newsroom. so that was our first task, was getting him to wellness. without angie's list, i don't know if we could have found all the services we needed for our riley.

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breaking news this morning in the mystery of flight 370. debris spotted. the question now, is this the breakthrough we have all been waiting for? australian officials reporting two objects, two objects possibly related to that missing jetliner, have been discovered in the indian ocean. we have live team coverage as only cnn can, breaking down the very latest on the investigation and on how the families are reacting this morning. >> and good morning and welcome to "early start." i'm rosa flores in for christine