Former FAA Investigator Optimistic About Malaysian Airlines Crash Probe

A retired FAA investigator is confident that the professionals being sent to the debris field of Malaysian Airlines Flight 17 will come up with conclusive evidence.

"Oh they'll get to the bottom of it," said Ed Garelick. "No doubt in my mind they'll figure out what happened."

Garelick, who was with the FAA for 43 years and spent the final 18 as an accident investigator, said that even though the crash scene has been compromised, there are clues untrained people would not recognize.

"The evidence is still there," Garelick said. "You can't completely destroy the evidence and the teams that are going in there – they're very good at what they do."

President Barack Obama confirmed Friday that at least one American was aboard the Malaysian Airlines jetliner that crashed in Ukraine after being shot down Thursday morning.

Pro-Russian separatists control the area of the crash site, according to Obama.

"They're gonna have the ability to analyze the parts that are on the ground, analyze the pieces that are in the debris field, and be able to piece together what happened," Garelick said.

Residues will be important evidence, Garelick said, evidence of fuel burning, explosives or missile propellant.

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