Malaysia's MH17 black box recovery a breakthrough in probe, says Dutch authority

MH17 | Malaysia's success in securing Malaysia Airlines' Flight 17 (MH17) data flight recorder from rebel-held territory in Donetsk, Ukraine days after its tragic crash on July 17, 2014 was the main breakthrough in the incident's investigation, says the Dutch Safety Board.

In a briefing session with Malaysian journalists on Friday, senior investigator (aviation) Gijsbert Vogelaar (above, centre) said the data recorder, otherwise known as the black box, played a crucial part in validating their findings on what could have caused the crash.

"In the beginning (of the investigation), we had to start working without the wreckage. But we have many photographs, of course, we have the radar data, and cockpit flight data recorder (black box).

"So based on all that information, we learned a lot about the incident before we got the wreckage," he told reporters during the special briefing session held at the board's office in The Hague, Netherlands....