Was Air France Captain With a Woman When Flight 447 Was in Trouble?
In the final chaotic moments before Air France flight 447 crashed into the Atlantic Ocean in 2009, it took the captain of the aircraft, who was on a scheduled break, more than a minute to return to the cockpit, despite his two co-pilotsf frantic calls for help, black box recordings showed.
Although it was never revealed what delayed Capt. Marc Dubois, two independent sources told ABC News that the 58-year-old veteran Air France pilot was traveling socially with an off-duty Air France flight attendant named Veronique Gaignard.
Jean-Paul Troadec, the director of BEA, the French authority conducting the investigation into the Flight 447 crash, told ABC News that Gaignard was not part of their investigation because the agency was gnot interestedh in the gprivate life of the pilot.h Troadec added that he did not think Duboisfs alleged relations with Gaignard aboard the plane would have played a role in the accident.
Air France 447 was on an overnight trip from Rio de Janiero to Paris on May 31, 2009 when it vanished. The plane crashed into the Atlantic Ocean in the early morning hours of June 1, 2009.
INFOGRAPHIC: Air France Flight 447: Timeline of Events
Black box tapes recovered from the wreckage two years later, in April 2011, revealed that Capt. Dubois left the cockpit for a scheduled nap about four hours into the flight, around the same time Flight 447 was about to enter a severe thunderstorm which other flights had avoided.
Once in the storm, the planefs pitot tube, a critical piece of equipment that tells the pilot the aircraftfs air speed, failed, likely from ice crystals forming on it, according to BEA officials who inspected the wreckage. When the pitot tube fails, the Airbus A330Œs automatic pilot system disengages, shifting control back to the pilot.
According to the tapes, First Officer Cedric Bonin, a 32-year-old pilot who had fewer than 5,000 flight hours under his belt, was at the controls but had never been in this situation before at high altitude. Bonin made the fatal mistake of pulling the planefs nose up, which caused it to go into a deep stall.
Within seconds, the plane was plummeting about 120 miles an hour in the dark, belly first, with the nose slightly elevated.
gIt seems that the pilots did not understand the situation and they were not aware that they had stalled,h Troadec said.
The co-pilots asked where the captain was and called for help several times before Dubois returned to the cockpit, the black box tapes showed. When Dubois burst in, he found a scene of utter confusion.
gWhatfs happening?h Dubois was heard saying on the black box recordings.
gI donft know whatfs happening,h one of the co-pilots replied.
gI have a problemcI have no more displays,h Dubois said.
They never regained control of the plane, and in the confusion, co-pilot Cedric Bonin thought his instruments were wrong. He was so befuddled that he was heard asking, gAm I going down now?h
All 228 passengers and crew aboard Air France flight 447 were killed.
BEA will release its final report on the investigation into the crash on July 5. Air France declined ABC Newsf request for an interview, pending the July release of the final report from Francefs investigation.
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Social outcasts are often of the opinion that they must have a drink before being able to loosen up with their inhibitions, thus being able to have a good time.
There's a word that sums up this sort of behaviour, and that word is 'reject.'
Jun-06-2012 22:06
Nrg2Nfinit
ItaloDiscoAddict
Registered: Sep 2001
Location: Ottawa
will the actual flight recording ever be released? i think that the NTSB used to have them archived if i'm not mistaken.
Jun-07-2012 00:46
_Ocean_Drive_
Supreme tranceaddict
Registered: Jul 2004
Location: Iwate
quote:
Originally posted by Nrg2Nfinit
will the actual flight recording ever be released? i think that the NTSB used to have them archived if i'm not mistaken.
I read that they were never going to be released since they were pretty horrific. I would like to them to be, though.
Originally posted by DJ Mikey Mike
Social outcasts are often of the opinion that they must have a drink before being able to loosen up with their inhibitions, thus being able to have a good time.
There's a word that sums up this sort of behaviour, and that word is 'reject.'
Last edited by _Ocean_Drive_ on Jun-07-2012 at 22:39
I wish they'd release the audio, but I don't think they ever will.
___________________
quote:
Originally posted by DJ Mikey Mike
Social outcasts are often of the opinion that they must have a drink before being able to loosen up with their inhibitions, thus being able to have a good time.
There's a word that sums up this sort of behaviour, and that word is 'reject.'
Last edited by _Ocean_Drive_ on Jul-08-2012 at 22:51
I wish they'd release the audio, but I don't think they ever will.
they will at least be making a mayday episode on it (air crash investigation) for season 12, final episode of the season.
Jul-09-2012 00:00
Lira
Ancient BassAddict
Registered: Nov 2001
Location: Brasilia, Brazil
quote:
Originally posted by _Ocean_Drive_
I wish they'd release the audio, but I don't think they ever will.
Maybe it's better if they don't. I can't imagine how painful it must be for the families of the deceased to listen to this if TV stations ever decide to broadcast the audio (which I reckon they will if they get the chance to)... and, if you don't know the people involved, it's probably just three desperate Frenchmen panicking with chimes and bells on the background - which I guess is more than enough to grant anyone dozens of nightmare-filled weeks
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Jul-09-2012 05:08
_Ocean_Drive_
Supreme tranceaddict
Registered: Jul 2004
Location: Iwate
quote:
Originally posted by Lira
Maybe it's better if they don't. I can't imagine how painful it must be for the families of the deceased to listen to this if TV stations ever decide to broadcast the audio (which I reckon they will if they get the chance to)... and, if you don't know the people involved, it's probably just three desperate Frenchmen panicking with chimes and bells on the background - which I guess is more than enough to grant anyone dozens of nightmare-filled weeks
True. I'm not a ghoul, just have an interest to hear it. Other baclk box recordings have been released in the past (notably the JAL ones) but I don't know why they don't want to release this one. Maybe it's the impending manslaughter charges going on against Air France and Airbus.
What's the reception been like in Brazil?
___________________
quote:
Originally posted by DJ Mikey Mike
Social outcasts are often of the opinion that they must have a drink before being able to loosen up with their inhibitions, thus being able to have a good time.
There's a word that sums up this sort of behaviour, and that word is 'reject.'
Jul-09-2012 19:23
Lira
Ancient BassAddict
Registered: Nov 2001
Location: Brasilia, Brazil
quote:
Originally posted by _Ocean_Drive_
True. I'm not a ghoul, just have an interest to hear it. Other baclk box recordings have been released in the past (notably the JAL ones) but I don't know why they don't want to release this one. Maybe it's the impending manslaughter charges going on against Air France and Airbus.
What's the reception been like in Brazil?
From what I read, the families of the deceased are quite angry at the conclusions because they feel blaming the pilots means cutting the story short and leaving the people responsible for the accident off the hook.
For them (someone from) Air France must pay... if the media is to be trusted, that is. They cock up all the time around here
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