228 Feared Dead as Air France Jet Is Lost Off Brazil

New York Times International Herald Tribune ^ | June 1, 2009 | CAROLINE BROTHERS and SHARON OTTERMAN

[Cincinna]

An Air France passenger jet traveling from Rio de Janeiro to Paris disappeared and was presumed to have crashed after its electrical systems malfunctioned during a violent electric storm on Sunday evening. Officials said Monday that a search had begun for the wreckage in a vast swath of the Atlantic Ocean.

Experts were at a loss to explain fatal damage to a modern jetliner from either lightning or turbulence, even that of a tropical storm.

“Air France is extremely distraught and the whole team of Air France is suffering,” Pierre Henri Gourgeon, the chief executive of Air France-KLM, told reporters in Paris. “We would like to say to the relatives of the victims that we are totally with them and will make every effort to help them.”

President Nicolas Sarkozy of France said: “It’s a tragic accident. The chances of finding survivors are tiny.”

The plane, an Airbus 330-200, was carrying 216 passengers, 9 cabin crew members and 3 pilots, the airline said. In all, people of 32 nationalities were on the plane, most of them Brazilian or European. There were also two Americans, the airline said.

[xcamel]

did you even look at the forum sidebar?

[Cincinna]

*** FRENCH POLITICS AND CULTURE PING LIST *** FREEPMAIL ME IF YOU WANT TO JOIN ***

May God bless the lost passengers and bring comfort to their families.

The latest from French News is that President Sarkozy has declared it "highly unlikely" that any survivors would be found. He met with every family member waiting at Roissy Airport, where the Sarko government assembled teams of doctors and psychologists, as well as a Priest, to counsel and treat the families. Jean-Louis Borloo and Bernard Kouchner accompanied the President to meet with the families.

Experienced Air France pilots who have flown this and similar planes, say a lightening strike should be ruled out as a cause.

Because of the vastness of the search area, and the depth of the waters, it is highly unlikely that the black boxes would be located.

IMHO they are thinking the unthinkable, and the unspeakable.... terrorism.

President Nicolas Sarkozy of France, right, with his transport minister, Jean-Louis Borloo, held a news conference at Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris on Monday.

[Jewbacca]

Generally, terrorists crow about killing.

I’ve heard no one take credit.

[Cincinna]

UPDATES WILL BE POSTED ON THIS THREAD AS THEY ARRIVE

[VRWCTexan]

Several nationalities on board - majority being Brazilian - has anyone on board surfaced as a more likely terrorist target - e.g. Mossad agents...

[ml/nj]

IMHO they are thinking the unthinkable, and the unspeakable.... terrorism.

Yeah. And the terrorist just thought to wait until they flew through severe turbulence to camouflage his actions. Or do you think it was someone in a dingy in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean with a missile that could reach 35,000 feet?

Some people have no clue.

ML/NJ

[riri]

LOL. Right? And he didn’t want a plane full of Americans...he went for the French and Brazilians.

[mewzilla]

Yeah. And the terrorist just thought to wait until they flew through severe turbulence to camouflage his actions.

From what I've seen reported, the plane encountered the turbulence an hour before it disappeared. And it disappeared out over deep ocean, where radar coverage was unavailable. Do recall the plane plot from '06? The Islamists were going to blow up the planes over the mid-Atlantic, IIRC. I don't know what happened in this case, but I hope authorities aren't ruling anything out yet.

[eleni121]

The network AVIATION expert tonIght announced that it was 50-50 an EXPLOSION!

[ml/nj]

And he didn’t want a plane full of Americans...he went for the French and Brazilians.

I didn't want to pile on! (But maybe there was a Jew on the plane?)

ML/NJ

[Cincinna]

The French Secret Service and military and visited the homes and searched the belongings of each and every passenger.

It could possibly have been someone on board with a device.

[eccentric]

Alright, I'm stupid. I have never been over the ocean....

but HOW CAN an airliner disappear?!?! There has got to be something out there! Are they on the LOST island? We are told there are satellites that can see buildings, but they can't see airplanes?

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks Cincinna. I carelessly forgot to ping ya to the other one:

Fears for 228 as Air France jet vanishes
CNN | June 1, 2009
Posted on 06/01/2009 3:50:07 AM PDT by rdl6989
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2262007/posts

and I’d not seen this one:

No Hope For 228 Passengers And Crew Feared Dead In Air France Catastrophe
London Times | June 01st 2009
Posted on 06/01/2009 10:13:17 AM PDT by Steelfish
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2262250/posts

[kabar]

It may not be terrorism, but the scenarios you provide are not the only ones. A group of terrorists could have taken over the aircraft ala 9/11. Weapons could have been prepositioned on the aircraft by ground support personnel. Or an exposive device could have been placed in the baggage or the baggage compartment. Lots of other scenarios. No security system is foolproof, especially in a country like Brazil.

I don't believe it was terrorism in this case.

[aimee5291]

This is terrible...

I fear the plane has crashed in the sea...

I pray for all on the plane and their families..

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

The satellite would have to be over the site at just the right time. Very little of the world's land mass is covered by RT satellite imagery and almost none of the ocean.

[Winstons Julia]

Prayers...as always.

[Winstons Julia]

Wow. Harsh.

What I heard tonight was that planes fly through what this plane flew through all the time without disappearing.

They are thinking bomb on board.

[SC Swamp Fox]

HOW CAN an airliner disappear?

Do you ever browse Google Earth? Sometimes people bookmark aircraft in flight, it is surprising how far you have to zoom in to see them. Unless a large piece of the aircraft is floating it may be incredibly hard to spot the debris from the air.

I spent 5 years at sea in my youth and I have been on multiple flights over the Atlantic and Pacific. Oceans are incredibly big.