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Second 'Black Box' Found From Air France 447

   VOA News  May 03, 2011
   A BEA air accident inquiry official (R), seen in this image published
   on the web site of France's BEA air accident inquiry office surveys the
   handling of a flight data recorder aboard ship, May 2, 2011

Photo: Reuters

   A BEA air accident inquiry official (R), surveys the handling of a
   flight data recorder aboard ship, May 2, 2011

   French investigators say they have recovered the second flight recorder
   from the Air France plane that crashed into the Atlantic Ocean near
   Brazil almost two years ago.
   France's air accident investigation agency (BEA) said Monday that
   search teams scouring the seabed found the Cockpit Voice Recorder in
   good condition. Officials hope the audio recording of the final few
   minutes of the flight can help them determine exactly why the plane
   crashed.
   French officials announced Sunday that an unmanned submarine had
   located and recovered the first flight data recorder, or "black box."
   Air France Flight 447 plunged into the Atlantic in June 2009, not long
   after taking off from Rio de Janeiro for Paris. The disaster killed all
   228 people on board.
   The plane was flying in a storm, but the exact cause of the crash has
   not been determined.
   Experts speculate that icing on external speed sensors gave the pilots
   incorrect readings.
   In March, a French judge placed the European aircraft maker Airbus
   under investigation for possible involuntary manslaughter charges in
   the 2009 crash.

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