Posted on 01/03/2004 8:21:35 PM PST by DeaconBenjamin
PARIS
MANY children and entire families were among at least 134 French tourists killed in a plane crash off the Egyptian coast while heading home after a New Year holiday in the sun, a French airport official said yesterday.
Thirty-five relatives of some of those aboard the Egyptian airliner which crashed into the Red Sea early yesterday gathered at Paris' Charles de Gaulle airport to grieve and speak to counsellors.
The plane also carried 13 crew members of Flash Airlines, a private firm.
The head of medical services at the airport told reporters that many children were on board the plane, which crashed shortly after take-off from the popular resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.
Mr Michel Clerel, who is in charge of counselling for relatives of the victims, said those aboard included a family of seven.
The relatives 'are in shock', he told reporters at a hotel near the airport, where the plane had been due to land yesterday.
'You have to imagine they were waiting for family members to come back from a holiday, then it was brutally announced to them that they had died.'
There was confusion at the crisis centre in the hotel, as people scoured the list of passengers on the crashed plane for names of friends and relatives.
At the Flash Airlines office in Cairo, about 20 people gathered.
One man was checking on his daughter, a 30-year-old stewardess on the flight. He walked out in despair 15 minutes later, supported by relatives.
Even as fears over another Sept 11 attack have affected more than a dozen flights from the United States, Europe and the Middle East in the past week, French and Egyptian officials were quick to stress that the crash was the result of a technical failure.
In Paris, French Transport Minister Gilles de Robien said there was nothing to indicate that the crash was anything but an accident.
Egyptian officials said the plane disappeared from the radar screens around 4.44am (10.44am Singapore time). Before it crashed, no distress call was sent.
The Boeing 737-300 jet was one of two operated by Flash Airlines. AFP, AP, Reuters
| Rank | Location | Receipts | Donors/Avg | Freepers/Avg | Monthlies | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 | Oregon | 230.00 |
7 |
32.86 |
218 |
1.06 |
85.00 |
5 |
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Isn't that an oxymoron?
My parents and oldest brother once missed a flight out of San Fran many years ago....because my mother was so slow getting ready. The plane crashed. That was back in the 1940's.
None of us would be here today if my Mom wasn't late that day.
It's basically off the news already, and hardly ever was ON the news, and I'll bet over 90% of Americans never heard about it in the first place. What a snow job. These guys are getting better at this coverup thing all the time.
It's basically off the news already, and hardly ever was ON the news, and I'll bet over 90% of Americans never heard about it in the first place. What a snow job. These guys are getting better at this coverup thing all the time.
With some minor differences: Tony Blair was not vacationing in NYC, there were no Egyptian combat pilots on board, and the sea was not conveniently deep.
Is this not SICK that this crash story is completely off the news already? If I weren't so media wise, I would say this is UNBELIEVABLE!!!! But I've seen it before, and it gets worse every day.
The way the news is controlled, there is a good chance Hillary Rotten will be President of the USA soon!
No s**t!
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