EgyptAir crash flight MS 804 sent distress call as pilot sent plane down to try and put out fires
Cover-up fears grow as aviation experts say pilot made ‘distress call’ to controllers before plane went down
THE mystery of the EgyptAir disaster deepened last night amid claims the pilot did raise the alarm and crashed after an “emergency descent”.
Initial reports stated Mohamed Said Shoukair lost all radio contact before the jet plunged into the sea, killing all 66 on board.
But aviation sources in Paris last night said he spoke to controllers as the Airbus A320 began to fall last Thursday, sparking fears of a cover-up.
Officials said a “conversation several minutes long” amounted to “a distress call”.
The pilot then reportedly initiated a rapid descent aimed at putting out a fire on board and clearing smoke.
The manoeuvre can be extremely dangerous and may account for the jet’s violent swerves as it fell from 37,000ft.
A leaked data report also suggests a fire in the flight deck, suggesting a catastrophic electronics malfunction.
A terrorist firebomb planted in a toilet on the Paris to Cairo flight remained top of the list of suspected crash causes last night.
It also emerged hardline Muslims had graffitied the jet two years earlier with the words: “We will bring this plane down.”
Aviation workers supporting ousted Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi were responsible.
The incident exposed serious security concerns over the extremist sympathies of airside staff.
Workers in Cairo and Paris were being investigated yesterday as investigations into the Flight MS804 crash continued.
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