Free Republic

A charter jet full of French tourists returning home after vacations in Egypt crashed into the Red Sea early Saturday, killing all 148 people aboard after an apparent mechanical failure, officials said. Searchers spent the day circling the waters in small boats looking for survivors but found only bodies, body parts and debris, including suitcases, shoes, life preservers and small bits of plane wreckage. Swimsuit-clad tourists watched the search efforts from the beach. Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, President Moshe Katzav, and Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz sent their condolences to the Egyptian and French governments. In France and Egypt, distraught family...