![]() In August 2005, an Air France plane burst into flames after landing amid a fierce thunderstorm at Toronto's Pearson International Airport. Four other people on the ground were killed. The flight's passenger list has not been released, but it did include seven children and one baby.Ĭanadians concerned about Canadian family members flying on the Air France flight can contact the Department of Foreign Affairs at 1-80 or (613) 943-1055, for those living in the Ottawa area.Īir France has also set up toll-free numbers: 0800 800 812 in France or +33 157021055 for international callers.Īir France's last major incident was in July 2000 when a Concorde supersonic jet crashed shortly after taking off from Charles de Gaulle Airport, killing all 109 people on board. ![]() Other than Canada, countries known to have passengers on board include Brazil, France, Germany, Italy, U.S., China, Hungary, Spain, U.K., Morocco and Ireland. ((Gonzalo Fuentes/Reuters))įamilies and friends who arrived at the Paris airport to meet passengers on board were taken to a special information centre set up by Air France. French, Brazilians, Italians on flightĭistraught relatives and friends of passengers arrive at the crisis centre at Charles de Gaulle Airport near Paris. "Our thoughts are with the passengers and with the families of the passengers," said Airbus spokeswoman Maggie Bergsma. The plane had 18,870 flight hours and went into service in April 2005.Īirbus said it would not comment further until more details emerged. "And as soon as we know anything, we will pass it on. "I want to say that the whole airline is deeply touched and shares the mourning of the relatives of passengers," he said, appearing visibly shaken. When asked whether the airline could rule out an attack, Gourgeon said he had "no way of answering that." However, senior French government minister Jean-Louis Borloo said the plane was not hijacked.īoth the pilot and co-pilot were experienced and had considerable time spent flying the aircraft, said Gourgeon. ((Bruno Domingos/Reuters))Īviation experts say the jet can no longer be in the air, because of the amount of fuel it can hold, and they have speculated a catastrophic event may have occurred.įrançois Brousse, the head of communications at Air France, told reporters several of the plane's mechanisms had malfunctioned, and that it could have been struck by lightning, but aviation experts expressed doubt that a bolt of lightning was enough to bring the plane down.īill Voss, president and CEO of the Virginia-based Flight Safety Foundation, said planes have specific measures built in to help dissipate electricity along the aircraft's skin and are tested for resistance to powerful electromagnetic shocks and equipped to resist them. Relatives and friends of Air France Flight AF447 passengers arrive at the Windsor Hotel in Rio de Janeiro on Monday, after being sent there to wait for more information about the plane. Military flights from the West African country of Senegal are also aiding the search. Other reports, however, suggest the flight may have been further advanced across the ocean when it went missing. ![]() "We are probably facing an air catastrophe," he said.īrazilian military planes and ships are searching an area near the archipelago of Fernando de Noronha, more than 300 kilometres off the most eastern point of Brazil and about 2,400 kilometres northeast of Rio. "You can interpret that as meaning the plane was in a difficult situation as it … went through storms." "After it crossed through storms … then automatic messages were sent out by the plane indicating there was a fault," said Gourgeon. ET) and was scheduled to land in Paris on Monday morning, but ran into severe weather. ET Monday: Air France sets up crisis centre.ĥ:15 a.m. ET Monday - Plane misses scheduled arrival time in Paris. ET Monday: French military radar begins searching for plane.ģ:30 a.m. ET Sunday - Air France receives automatic message from plane "signalling electrical circuit malfunction."ġ-2 a.m. ET Sunday - Last contact Brazil's air force has with plane.ġ0:14 p.m. ET Sunday - Flight leaves Rio de Janeiro.ĩ:36 p.m.
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