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Malaysian official denies Flight MH370 flew for 4 hours after last contact

WATCH: CBS News’ Susan McGinnis looks at the latest theory behind the disappearance of flight MH370

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Malaysia’s defence minister has denied reports that engine data from the missing Malaysian jetliner indicated it may have kept flying for four hours after its last communication.

Acting Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein was referring to reports that the Rolls Royce engines aboard the Boeing 777 automatically sent data to the engine manufacturer as part of a maintenance program.

The Wall Street Journal said U.S. officials suspect the plane continued flying for four hours after its last contact, based on data from the engines.

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Hishammuddin said Thursday that both Rolls Royce and Boeing said that report was wrong.

No plane debris found at spot shown by satellite images

Malaysia’s civil aviation chief says no plane debris was found at a location shown by China’s satellite images.

China’s official Xinhua News Agency reported Wednesday the largest of the suspected pieces of debris measures about 24 metres (79 feet) by 22 metres (72 feet).

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CCTV America tweeted the satellite images Wednesday afternoon but noted they had not verified their authenticity.

Oil rig worker saw Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 go down

Earlier Wednesday it was reported that an oil rig worker claimed he saw Flight 370 crash while working off the south coast of Vietnam.

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ABC News correspondent Bob Woodruff obtained a copy of an email the man said he sent to his employer stating he witnessed the crash.

“I believe I saw the Malaysia Airlines plane come down. The timing is right,” the man said in the email. “I tried to contact the Malaysian and Vietnam officials several days ago. But I don’t know if the message has been received.”

Last words from missing Malaysian plane

“All right, good night” were the final words heard by air traffic controllers from the missing Malaysia Airlines flight before it vanished over the South China Sea five days ago, relatives of the passengers were told Wednesday.

News of the last communication came as Malaysia defended its handling of the hunt for the missing Boeing 777 but acknowledged it is still unsure which direction the plane was headed when it disappeared, highlighting the massive task facing the international search.

Government officials said they asked India to join in the search near the Andaman Sea, suggesting they think the jetliner and the 239 people on board might have reached those waters after crossing into the Strait of Malacca, some 400 kilometres (250 miles) from the flight’s last known co-ordinates.

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