Air France Tail Found

Investigation among most complex and expensive in history

(AP) - French investigators have recovered all the flight data and cockpit voice recordings from the recorders of an Air France jet found in the Atlantic nearly two years after it crashed, they said today. The recorders were located by underwater robots and hoisted from depths of some 13,000 feet earlier this month , in one of the most expensive and complicated air crash investigations in history. Investigators and victims' families are hoping the recorders will shed light on what sent Flight 447 into the sea on June 1, 2009, as it traveled from Rio de Janeiro to Paris. More»

Investigators hope for clues in 2009 plane crash

(NEWSER) - On the heels of recovering the black box from the doomed Air France flight that fell out of the sky off the Brazilian coast nearly two years ago, French investigators have pulled the cockpit recorder from the depths of the Atlantic, reports the AP. It's not yet certain whether the recorder has held up to the ocean pressure that comes with a resting place 12,800 feet below sea level. But investigators have said they have no shot of determining the cause of the crash without the devices. "It is my heartfelt hope that the data contained in these flight recorders may be used and provide answers," said Air France's CEO in a statement. Click for more on the lost Air France plane. More»

Fourth search for Flight 447's black boxes to begin in February

(AP) - The French government will conduct a fourth search for the flight recorders of the Air France jetliner that crashed into the Atlantic Ocean while flying from Rio de Janeiro to Paris 18 months ago, it announced today. The initial search for Flight 447 found 50 bodies and hundreds of pieces of the plane, including its torn-off tail. But the latest search, a $13 million third effort, ended in May and did not find the "black box" voice and data recorders at the crash site, where the ocean is as deep as 13,120 feet. The fourth search will begin in February. More»

Crash raises questions on if today's pilots can cope with computer failure

(NEWSER) - Investigators trying to piece together the fate of Air France Flight 447 in the absence of its black boxes are focusing on possible computer failures, the Wall Street Journal reports. The evidence suggests a problem with the sensors quickly snowballed into widespread computer outages, leaving the crew struggling to manage without the automated systems on which modern pilots rely. More»

(NEWSER) - Brazil's Navy and Air Force gave up their search for Air France Flight 447 victims today, citing the difficulty of finding bodies and wreckage 25 days after the crash, Reuters reports. "It's already been nine days without seeing any bodies," a Brazilian officer said. French ships will remain, seeking black boxes that may help solve the mystery of the crash. Fifty-one bodies and 600 pieces of wreckage have been recovered so far. More»