Debris from the missing EgyptAir flight has been found, after a false alarm that the wreckage had been found Thursday.
EgyptAir Flight 804 crashed in the Mediterranean Sea with 66 people aboard Friday. According to Egypt’s army spokesman Friday, wreckage and passenger belongings were found 180 miles north of the coastal city of Alexandria.
A body part, two seats and at least one suitcase has been found, Greek Defense Minister Panos Kammenos said.
Though the cause of the crash has yet to be determined, both Egyptian and United States officials it is more likely terrorism than mechanical fault. However, there has been “absolutely no indication” of how the plane went down, French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said on Friday morning.
Greek officials say the plane swerved sharply twice then plunged 37,000 feet to 10,000 feet after entering Cairo airspace. It then lost contact with radar and crashed into the water, they said.
Greek, Egyptian, French and British forces have been helping with the search mission in the Mediterranean, near Greece’s Karpathos Island.
The plane left Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport at around 1 a.m. local time Thursday and was scheduled to arrive in Cairo almost four hours later.
Reports say that when the pilot spoked to air traffic controllers as the plane entered Greek airspace, everything sounded normal. As the plane was set to enter Egyptian airspace, air traffic controllers tried to contact the pilot again but “despite repeated calls, the aircraft did not respond.” Minutes later it disappeared from radar.
Most names of those on board — which included 56 passengers, seven crew members and three security personnel — have not been named publicly.
