France to send experts to find causes of EgyptAir flight disappearance

Paris, May 20: France's air accident investigation agency BEA said on Thursday that it is sending three experts "in the coming hours" to help establish the causes of EgyptAir plane's disappearance.

BEA said its three members would be accompanied with a technical consultant from Airbus, the manufacturer of the aircraft, Xinhua quoted a press release as saying.

The group of experts would help the Egyptian authorities make underwater searches to locate the plane and flight recorders, it added.

The Egyptian Foreign Ministry confirmed to Egyptian Civil Aviation Ministry that wreckages of the missing airplane were found near the Greek Island of Karpathos, EgyptAir said on Thursday.

In a press statement, EgyptAir said Civil Aviation Ministry has received an official letter from the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs declaring the finding of wreckage of the missing Flight MS804 near Karpathos Island.

Reiterating the close cooperation with Egyptian officials to determine the cause, French President Francois Hollande said to dispatch aircraft and vessels to help the Egyptian authorities to find debris that would "allow to know the truth".

"France is in contact with Egyptian and Greek authorities," said French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault.

On Thursday morning's phone conversation with his Egyptian counterpart, Ayrault expressed France's solidarity with Egypt over the event that concerns also French nationals, the French Foreign Ministry said in a press release.

IANS