A Phoenix-based expert believes whatever happened to a missing Malaysia Airlines flight over the weekend was the result of the catastrophic destruction of the plane.

Jim Tilmon was interviewed on CNN.

“Of course the debris field that we will establish after this investigation goes a little further will give us some indication about whether it broke up before it hit the water, because it makes a very wide debris field,” Tilmon said.

Tilmon bases his theory on the failure of the crew to send a distress signal.

There is still no confirmation the plane even crashed despite more than two days of searching for it and the 239 people on board.