Key Part of Air France Plane Recovered By Searchers
Key Part of Air France Plane Recovered by Searchers – On Tuesday, investigators found the tail section of Air France Flight 447 which could provide clues to why the plane carrying 228 people crashed in the Atlantic Ocean on May 31, 2009. The find also is a good indicator of where searchers should look for the black boxes.
The tail section of the plane includes the vertical stabilizer which prevents the nose of the plane from swinging back and forth. It also has the rudder which controls and generates the side-to-side motion of an aircraft. The data and voice recorders are also located near the tail in the fuselage. A video called “Vertical Stabilizer Found” shows the part being found and tied to a ship.
Key Part of Air France Plane Recovered
William Waldock of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Arizona examined the video and photos of the rudder and stabilizer and said that damage appeared to be a lateral fracture. He said “That would reinforce the idea that the plane broke up in flight. If it hits intact, everything shatters in tiny pieces.” There were no signs of burn marks and Waldock indicated that that’s not significant since any explosion in the fuselage would probably not make its way to the tail section.
The recovery of more bodies and debris are helping searchers narrow the search for the cockpit voice and data recorders which should shed some light on the reason for the crash. Even though the black boxes may not be exactly where the parts are found, it narrows the area. Black boxes emit a signal for up to 30 days so searchers have to move quickly to recover them before the signal fades. US Navy Ships with devices capable of picking up signals 20,000 feet below the surface of the ocean, are en route to help with the search.
