Air France A330 Crash: 228 Feared Dead, Investigation Widens

Strategic Insights -

The crash of an Airbus A330 passenger jet into the Atlantic ocean with the probable loss of 228 lives has been described as a "catastrophe the likes of which the company Air France has never seen." The twin-engine jet, carrying 216 passengers, three pilots, and nine cabin crew, took off from Rio de Janeiro on Sunday and was due to land at Paris yesterday. French president Nicolas Sarkozy requested intelligence from US military satellites to locate the crash site, while aircraft and ships from several countries are scouring the ocean.

Key Takeaways:

  • The Airbus A330, a twin-engine jet, crashed into the Atlantic ocean with the probable loss of 228 lives, making it the first A330 crash in commercial service.
  • The aircraft was carrying 216 passengers, three pilots, and nine cabin crew, including 58 Brazilian passengers, 61 French people, 26 Germans, and several other nationalities.
  • The captain of the flight had 11,000 hours of flying experience, including 1,700 on the Airbus A330/340 family of jets.
  • The Airbus A330 has never previously had a fatal crash in commercial service, although a test aircraft crashed in 1994 at Toulouse, killing all seven crew.
  • The crash occurred after the aircraft entered an area of severe turbulence, and air traffic controllers were unable to re-establish contact with the plane.
  • Investigators are concerned about the lack of information and the possibility that the flight data recorders may never be recovered.

Statistics:

  • 228 people feared dead in the crash
  • 216 passengers on board, including 58 Brazilians, 61 French people, and 26 Germans
  • 3 pilots and 9 cabin crew members on board
  • The Airbus A330, a twin-engine jet, had 18,870 flight hours accrued since entering service in April 2005
  • The aircraft had two General Electric CF6-80E engines
  • The captain of the flight had 11,000 hours of flying experience

Sources:

  • Nicolas Sarkozy, French president (no specific date or source cited)
  • Brazilian air force (specific date: 01.48 GMT, 01.18 local time)
  • David Learmount, operations and safety editor of Flight International magazine (no specific date or source cited)
  • Air France (no specific date or source cited)
  • Eich Heine, chairman of CSA (no specific date or source cited)
  • Ascend, the aviation consultancy, Paul Hayes (no specific date or source cited)