Air France Flight 447

Guide Note

• Air France Flight 447, flying from Rio de Janeiro to Paris, went off the radar on the morning of June 1, 2009. The Airbus 330-200 sent an automated message stating the plane had an electrical short circuit as they crossed through a thunderstorm and experienced turbulence over the Atlantic Ocean.Guardian Unlimited: Air France Plane: 'no Hope' of Survivors (June 1, 2009)¹ The last contact the plane made was at about 8:30 p.m. EST, on the evening of Sunday, May 31, 2009.CNN.com: Missing Air France Jet 'hit by Electric Fault' (June 1, 2009)²

  
  Hours after Brazialian authorities announced that military planes spotted what seemed to be debris from a plane, Defense Minister Nelson Jobim confirmed that the debris was from Flight 447, which crashed in the Atlantic Ocean. The trail of the plane's debris stretched out for three miles, but no bodies were found amongst the wreckage.Boston.com: Brazil confirms Air France jet crashed in ocean (June 2, 2009)³

• Fast Facts

  1. Date: June 1, 2009
  2. Air France flight 447 departed from Rio de Janeiro
  3. Was an Airbus 330-200
  4. Was destined for Paris, France
  5. Left Brazil at 6:00 p.m. EST on Sunday, May 31, 2009 http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/americas/0...²
  6. Flight was supposed to last 11 hours http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/americas/0...²
  7. 216 passengers on board and 12 crew members http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/jun...¹
  8. An automated message was sent http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/jun...¹
  9. Apparently experienced an electrical short circuit http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/jun...¹
  10. Had crossed through a thunderous zone with strong turbulence http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/jun...¹
  11. Plane disappeared near the archipelago of Fernando de Noronha in the Atlantic Ocean http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/americas/0...²
  12. Family members of the missing passengers were received by a crisis team at the Paris Charles de Gaulle Terminal 2 http://alphasite.airfrance.com/flight-ai...⁴

• Thunderstorm

  Speculation that the plane was effected by a 50,000-foot thunderstorm was made by meteorologist Henry Margusity. The plane reportedly sent a number of automated distress message to air traffic control, which typically mean that on-board systems have failed.Bloomberg: France Sends Planes, Ships... (June 1, 2009)⁵

• Missing Over Atlantic

  Hours later, there was still no sign of the plane. Authorities continued to search for the plane, which had 216 passengers, including seven children and a baby on board. There were also 12 crew members on the flight including three pilots and nine stewardesses.Official Site: Flight Air France 447 Rio de Janeiro⁴ Bloomberg.com: Air France Airbus A330 Missing After Reporting Fault (June 1, 2009)⁶

  According to reports later in the day, a pilot for the Brazilian airline TAM had reported seeing "orange points" on the ocean along the route taken by Flight 447. After finding out about the plane's disappearance, the pilot speculated that what he had seen were bits of its burning wreckage.CBS News: Vast Search Of Atlantic Ocean For Air France Jet (June 1, 2009)⁷

• Two Americans on Board

  According to reports, two Americans were on board Air France Flight 447. Michael and Anne Harris relocated from the Houston, Texas, area to Brazil in July 2008. Michael Harris worked as a geologist for Devon Energy. Anne Harris' sister said the couple were traveling to Paris, France, for a training seminar.CNN: Wreckage seen in search area for missing plan
  

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