The aircraft mechanism found behind the Ground Zero “mosque” site belongs to a Boeing 767 — the same model airliner used in the 2001 World Trade Center attacks, police confirmed today.
But aviation experts say a number stamped on the aircraft wreckage probably won’t help determine which of the two 767s used in the attacks it came from.
The number, BOEING CSTG 65B84045, is a “casting number” not unique to the part or to the plane, said Alan Lery of Turbo Resources International Inc., an Arizona aircraft-parts seller.
It’s possible a number of parts on the mechanism have the same designation, said Lery.
“Sometimes the airlines track every single part number that comes with the plane, but not likely this,” he said.
Police said Boeing told them the part is from a Boeing 767.
Surveyors working for the developer of the controversial Muslim cultural center at 51 Park Place found the part found Wednesday in an 18-inch-wide space behind the building.
The mechanism — believed to be a landing gear — was found more than 80 feet from the only access point, a doorway at 45 Park Place next door.
Cops are treating the space as a crime scene and were guarding the site yesterday. Investigators are expected to remove the part on Monday.
The number is visible on a section of the part, which is about five-feet long and 17-inches wide.
Aircraft-parts experts say that while the number may not be unique to either of the Boeing 767s, probers may yet find a serial number or other traceable information on the mechanism.
Lery said the “65B” designation in the casting number suggests that the part indeed came from a landing gear, as police believe. But he said experts will need to inspect the mechanism to be sure.
More evidence is needed, said Chuck Horning, chairman of the Aircraft Maintenance Science department at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Florida.
“Being that both aircraft were Boeing 767-200s, they both likely had components with the same casting number,” Horning said.
While police believe the mechanism was hidden behind 51 Park Place all 11 years after the 9/11 attack, they’re also checking the possibility it was put there afterward.
One mystery is how a rope became entwined in the mechanism.
But the find is no surprise given that aircraft parts were found on roofs all over the neighborhood after the attacks.
The city Medical Examiner’s Office plans to start searching for human remains at the site on Tuesday, spokeswoman Ellen Borakove said.
The building at 51 Park Place is owned by Con Edison and has been leased for years by Soho Properties, which wants to convert it to a Muslim community center that will include a prayer space.
The plans have been stalled for years by legal and financial woes.
bsanderson@nypost.com