Air France Tragedy Stumps Investigators

Weather alone can't explain crash: aviation analyst

(NEWSER) - Searchers spotted more wreckage today from Air France Flight 447, which crashed into the Atlantic Ocean earlier this week with 228 people aboard. A team of international aircraft discovered four fields of metallic debris and a 12-mile fuel slick some 220 miles off the Brazilian coast, the Washington Post reports. Lighter plane parts may flow in currents to Africa by next week. More»

(NEWSER) - A French airline-workers union has urged Air France crews to boycott long-haul Airbus jets until new speed sensors are installed, the Times of London reports. “To prevent a repeat” of the Flight 447 disaster, the Alter union said, “we call on flight deck and cabin crew to refuse all flights aboard the A330 and A340 series which have not been modified.” Alter represents 10% of Air France crews. More»

Officials say pallet found in crash zone was just 'sea trash'

(NEWSER) - Brazilian officials say debris they earlier believed was from Air France Flight 447 was actually just "sea trash," the BBC reports. A wooden pallet found 600 miles off Brazil's coast in the area where the jet is thought to have crashed probably came from a ship, and an oil slick photographed in the zone is now also believed to be from a passing ship. More»

(NEWSER) - How will authorities go about finding Air France Flight 447? Essentially, it'll take a lot more planes, Slate explains. Most of the jet’s location gadgets, like its emergency locator transmitters, are unlikely to work underwater. The flight recorders have sonar devices attached that can transmit from 14,000 feet down, but one needs to be relatively nearby to detect them. More»

(NEWSER) - Brazil's defense chief today made the grim news official: Debris found along a 3-mile stretch of ocean belongs to the Air France jet that went down in a storm, reports the BBC. "It confirms that the plane fell in this area," said Nelson Jobim, referring to a swath of the Atlantic about 400 miles from the Brazilian coast. Ships are expected to reach the area tomorrow, but there's no still no signs of any survivors. More»