EgyptAir flight MS804 crash may have been caused by pilot’s iPad catching fire, say investigators
Sixty-six people died when plane plunged into Mediterranean Sea last May
A PILOT’S iPad may have caused a plane crash that killed 66, it has emerged.
Investigators are looking at whether overheating mobile devices caused a fire on board.
CCTV is said to show a tablet and a bottle of perfume were placed on the instrument panel of EgyptAir flight MS804.
The probe is to focus on whether an iPad Mini 4 or an iPhone 6S belonging to the first officer caught fire after being plugged into an incorrect socket.
The plane crashed into the Mediterranean on its way from Paris to Cairo last May.
The victims included British dad-of-two Richard Osman, 40, from Jersey.
A source close to the French investigation said: “Cockpit plugs are not made for toasters or coffee pots. They’re for professional use.
“At this stage, the combustion or self-combustion of a tablet in the cockpit is the working hypothesis.”
Apple said it had not been contacted by any authority investigating the tragedy and there was no evidence to link it to its products.
It added: “We rigorously test our products to ensure they meet or exceed international safety standards.”
The theory is at odds with Egyptian authorities’ belief that a bomb placed on board at Charles de Gaulle Airport downed the plane.