Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi says an investigation into the cause of an EgyptAir plane crash could take a long time but the facts would be made public as soon as they were available. “It is very, very important to us to establish the circumstances that led to the crash of that aircraft”, he said in comments broadcast live on Egyptian TV channels. Sissi said the submarine was deployed from the Ministry of Petroleum, and is able operate about 9,800 feet below sea level.
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Experts said answers will come only with an examination of the wreckage, the cockpit voice recordings and the black boxes.
EgyptAir flight 804 from Paris to Cairo vanished off radar screens early on Thursday as it entered Egyptian airspace over the Mediterranean.
The likelihood that it was the victim of a terrorist attack was “far higher than the likelihood that the plane developed a technical failure”, Egyptian Civil Aviation Minister Sherif Fathy said.
According to the president, the submarine moved on Sunday “in the direction of the plane crash site” and Egypt’s authorities “are working hard to salvage the black boxes”.
Recovered debris of the EgyptAir jet that crashed in the Mediterranean Sea is seen with the Arabic caption “life jacket under seat” in this still image taken from video on May 21, 2016.
Flight MS804 – carrying 56 passengers including one Briton and 10 crew members from Paris to Cairo – went down about halfway between the Greek island of Crete and Egypt’s coastline, or around 175 miles offshore, after take-off from Charles de Gaulle Airport.
Russian Federation said the crash was caused by a bomb planted on the plane, and the local branch of the Islamic State claimed responsibility, citing Moscow’s involvement in Syria.
Investigators have confirmed reports that smoke detectors had gone off in the toilet and the aircraft’s electronics before the signal was lost.
The smoke signals were reportedly sent via the ACARS, or Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System, which transmits short condition updates to ground stations by radio or via satellite, the Aviation Herald reported, citing three independent sources.
Meanwhile, Sisi urged all media outlets Sunday not to jump to conclusions about the crash and said all possible causes for the disaster are being reviewed thoroughly.
The recovery of the black boxes is crucial to finding out what happened in the fateful moments before the plane crashed.
“That is where we are focusing and the sea there is between 2,300-3,000 metres deep”.
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In Cairo, several hundred mourners attended a memorial service for nine Coptic Christians killed in the crash, including 26-year-old flight attendants Yara Tawfik.
