Airbus da Air France desaparecido no oceano
Aeronave transportava 216 passageiros e 15 tripulantes.
Voo saiu do Rio em direo a Paris e sumiu dos radares.
A aeronutica j comeou as buscas pelo Airbus 330-200 da Air France que desapareceu dos monitores dos radares nesta segunda-feira (1) sobre o Oceano Atlntico.
O voo AF 447, que levava 216 passageiros e 15 tripulantes, segundo a empresa deveria ter pousado s 6h10 (horrio de Braslia) no aeroporto Charles de Gaulle, em Paris.
Segundo o assessor de imprensa da Aeronutica, coronel Henry Munhoz, as buscas foram iniciadas ao nascer do sol. Aeronaves da Fora Area Brasileira, a partir de Fernando de Noronha, no sentido de Paris, buscam a aeronave desaparecida, disse Munhoz.
Segundo o coronel, o avio no foi detectado nos radares da Ilha do Sal, que fica no meio do caminho entre Brasil e Europa. Em consequncia disso, a Fora Area Brasileira foi acionada durante a madrugada para que as buscas fossem iniciadas com o nascer do sol.
O assessor da Aeronutica explica que o departamento de controle do espao areo tem uma cobertura que corresponde a trs vezes a dimenso do Brasil. Boa parte do Oceano Atlntico est sob a responsabilidade do pas, de acordo com tratados internacionais. Portanto, as buscas esto a cargo do pas.
A Air France confirmou agncia France Presse que "no tinha notcias" do voo. Parentes de passageiros estavam sendo encaminhados para uma rea especial do aeroporto.
O ministro francs do Desenvolvimento, Jean-Louis Borloo, disse em entrevista radio France Info que, infelizmente, deve-se esperar pelo "mais trgico cenrio", uma vez que a reserva de combustvel do avio j deve ter acabado. Ele tambm descartou a possibilidade de sequestro e disse que o mais provvel que tenha havido um acidente.
O presidente da Frana, Nicolas Sarkozy, pediu ao governo que "faa todo o possvel" para encontrar pistas do avio, segundo comunicado emitido pelo Palcio do Eliseu. O governo montou uma "clula de crise" no aeroporto para acompanhar o caso.
Missing Air France jet 'hit by electric fault'
PARIS, France (CNN) -- An Air France plane missing over the Atlantic with 228 people aboard reported electrical problems in stormy weather before it lost contact, the airline said Monday, describing the loss as a "catastrophe."
The Airbus A330-200 sent automatic messages signaling equipment failure as it hit turbulence early in its 11-hour flight from Rio de Janeiro to Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris, Air France CEO Pierre-Henri Gourgeon told a news conference.
The last known contact with the plane was at 1:33 a.m. GMT (8:33 p.m. Sunday night ET), according to the Brazilian Air Force.
Brazil says it has launched two air force squadrons to hunt near the archipelago of Fernando de Noronha in the Atlantic Ocean, 365 kilometers (226 miles) from its coast, although the plane vanished outside the country's radar coverage.
Flight AF 447, took off shortly after 7 p.m. Sunday local time (6 p.m. Sunday ET). It was carrying 126 men, 82 women, seven children and a baby, in addition to the crew, CNN affiliate BFM reported.
"I can say without doubt that this is a catastrophe," Gourgeon said, adding "the entire Air France company and its staff are very moved and affected by this."
A crisis center was being set up at Charles de Gaulle to deal with anxious relatives and friends waiting for news of passengers. Air France has also set up a hotline: 0800 800 812 in France, or +33 157021055 for international callers..
Airbus has opened a crisis room and their flight safety team is in place, a company spokesperson told CNN. Airbus is working closely with authorities and Air France, he said, declining to comment further.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy expressed his "very deep concern" and asked the government "to implement every effort to find the plane," according to a statement from his office.
Agence France-Presse quoted France's Environment Minister Jean Louis Borloo saying that it was extremely unlikely the plane had been hijacked.
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