The former chief of France’s air accident investigation unit said the airbus A320's disappearance suggested a 'brutal event'
What we know so far:
- Egyptair flight MS804 with 66 people on board including one Brit has now been confirmed to have crashed by Egyptian aviation officials
- Jean-Paul Troadec, the former chief of France’s air accident investigation unit, the BEA, said the disappearance suggested a "brutal event" and was “almost certainly” caused by “an attack
- The plane took off from Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport at 11.09pm and went missing at 2.45am on route to Cairo International
- The Greek Merchant Navy has reported seeing a "flame in the sky" in the south Mediterranean
- The airline has also provided free contact numbers for families concerned for relatives. From outside of Egypt, anyone concerned should call+ 202 25989320
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Key Events So Far
What caused Egyptair MS804 to vanish?
Several theories as to what could have happened to missing EgyptAir jet MS804 are already emerging as the search continues.The aircraft was about to enter Egyptian airspace when it disappeared with 66 passengers and 10 crew on board - including one Briton.
Egyptian aviation officials say it has crashed in to the Mediterranean sea - although there are no reports of any debris yet and Egyptair say reason for disappearance hasn’t been yet confirmed.
The jet was on route from Paris to Cairo when it dropped from radar screens about 20 minutes from landing.
Investigators and search parties will currently be considering all the options.
Stephen Jones explores the options in his piece here.
Statement from Airbus
Airbus has released a statement following the disappearance of Egyptair A320 flight MS804:Airbus regrets to confirm that an A320 operated by Egyptair was lost at around 02:30 am (Egypt local time) today over the Mediterranean sea. The aircraft was operating a scheduled service, Flight MS 804 from Paris, France to Cairo, Egypt.
The aircraft involved, registered under SU-GCC was MSN (Manufacturer Serial Number) 2088 delivered to Egyptair from the production line in November 2003. The aircraft had accumulated approximately 48,000 flight hours. It was powered by IAE engines. At this time no further factual information is available.
In line with ICAO annex 13, Airbus stands-by ready to provide full technical assistance to French Investigation Agency - BEA - and to the Authorities in charge of the investigation.
The first A320 entered service in March 1988. At the end of April 2016 over 6700 A320 Family aircraft were in operation worldwide. To date, the entire fleet has accumulated nearly 180 million flight hours in over 98 million flights.
Our concerns go to all those affected.
Airbus will make further factual information available as soon as the details have been confirmed and cleared by the authorities for release.
No weather issues at time of EgyptAir plane disappearance
There were no weather issues when the EgyptAir plane with 66 people on board went missing, according to European air traffic network manager Eurocontrol.“There is no significant impact on traffic at present, although there is Search and Rescue activity in the area,” Eurocontrol said in a statement.
The plane is thought to have crashed near the Greek island of Karpatho.
Confusion over distress signal
The pilot of missing EgyptAir Flight 804 had not sent a distress signal before the plane disappeared at 2.45am, according to Egypt’s state-run newspaper.And the Egyptian military later said it had received no distress message from the aircraft, in a statement on its website.
However Egyptair is reported to have said a call was received by a military search and rescue team at 4.26am indicating it was likely an automated signal after impact.
The plane is thought to have crashed near the Greek island of Karpatho.
Location of crash revealed
Egyptair plane MS804 crashed off the Greek island of Karpatho, according to an airport source.Although Greek, Karpatho is in Egyptian airspace.
The south Agean island is 600 miles from the Egyptian coast
Desperate family members collapse at Cairo airport
Around 15 family members of passengers on board the missing flight arrived at Cairo airport desperately seeking news of their missing relatives.Several collapsed from the stress of the situation and authorities brought doctors to help them.
People from at a least 12 countries, including one Brit, were on board the flight
Egyptian PM 'cannot exclude terrorism'
The Egyptian PM refused to rule out the possbility of an attack.Asked by Reuters if terrorism could be involved in the plane’s disappearance, Sherif Ismail said he could not exclude any possibility.
66 people were on board the flight when it crashed
15 French passengers on board the plane
There were 15 French citizens among the 56 passengers on board when the plane crashed, the country’s foregin ministry confirmed.One child and two infants were also among that number.
A further ten people - seven crew and three security staff - were on board
breaking news
Crash was 'almost certainly an attack' says expert
Jean-Paul Troadec, the former chief of France’s air accident investigation unit, the BEA, said the disappearance was “almost certainly” caused by “an attack”.Mr Troadec, one of the most respected names in aviation, said the lack of live emergency alert suggested a “brutal event”.
He told Europe 1 radio station in Paris: “A technical problem, a fire or a failed motor do not cause an instant accident, and the team has time to react.
“The team said nothing, they did not react, so it was very probably a brutal event and we can certainly think about an attack
Watch flight path of jet before it crashed
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The Airbus A320 took off from Paris Charles de Gualle airport at 11.09pm last night.
It was due to arrive at Cairo International Airport in the early hours of this morning - but dropped from radar at 2.45am.
The flight path footage shows the plane fly over Eastern France, then the Swiss and Italian Alps.
It heads south over the Adriatic sea, then crosses Albania and Greece on route to the Med.