The discovery of debris believed to be from Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 is the first positive sign that hundreds of families may soon be provided with answers, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop says.
Malaysian authorities have confirmed the wing flap, which washed up on Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean this week, is from a Boeing 777 - all but confirming it is a part of the missing aircraft.
It has been sent to France for analysis as the international search effort, led by Australia and now spanning 16 months, continues.
"In a sense, this is the first positive sign that we have located part of that plane," Ms Bishop told Channel Seven on Saturday.
"Experts will have to analyse, if this is a piece of MH370, the current drifts and how it ended up there, what does that mean for the broader search question."
Ms Bishop reaffirmed Australia's commitment to the search and said the families of the 239 passengers on board deserved answers.
Flight MH370 was travelling from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing when it mysteriously veered off course and vanished on March 8 last year.
Ever since, authorities have been combing the southern Indian Ocean for the aircraft, but no confirmed physical evidence has been found, sparking wild conspiracy theories about the plane's fate.
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