The latter added that the submarine moved today in the direction of the plane crash site.
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Sisi said that underwater equipment from Egypt’s offshore oil industry was being brought in to help the search.
Egypt has said its navy has so far found human remains, personal belongings of passengers and wreckage floating in the sea about 290km north of Alexandria, but is still searching for the plane’s two black box recorders that could provide valuable evidence on the cause of the crash.
As we reported, French investigators said the plane sent a signal that smoke was detected in the plane’s toilets minutes before it crashed.
Egyptian Civil Aviation Minister Sharif Fathy has said terrorism was more likely to blame for the tragedy than a technical failure – and U.S. officials were operating under the theory that a bomb brought down the plane.
Egyptian officials have said they suspect the crash was caused by an act of terror, but no group has come forward to claim credit. The Airbus A320 had 66 people on board, including citizens from a dozen nations.
The passengers included 30 Egyptians, 15 French citizens, two Iraqis, two Canadians, and citizens from Algeria, Belgium, Britain, Chad, Portugal, Saudi Arabia and Sudan.
French television channel M6 says Mohamed Said Shoukair had “a conversation several minutes long” with Cairo air traffic control about the presence smoke filling parts of the aircraft and said he would make an emergency descent to try and clear the air.
ACARS is used to routinely download flight data to the airline operating the aircraft. I wanted to say it again: “We’re on their side”.
The Egyptian military has released images of debris recovered during its search for the missing EgyptAir plane, which disappeared from radar over the Mediterranean early Thursday.
Search crews, meanwhile, are scouring for further wreckage of the aircraft.
Jihadists have been fighting Egypt’s government since Sisi toppled an elected Islamist leader in 2013.
Smoke detection could also be triggered by sudden depressurisation of the aircraft’s cabin, theNew York Times reported.
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French investigators were interviewing all ground staff at Charles de Gaulle Airport who had either a direct or an indirect link to the flight. In October the Islamic State group claimed responsibility for blowing up a Russian airliner that exploded after taking off from an Egyptian tourist resort.
