EgyptAir flight MS804 travelling from Paris to Cairo “crashed” into Mediterranean Sea – terrorism cannot be ruled out

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Terrorism cannot be ruled out as the cause of the EgyptAir flight MS804 crash, authorities have said, as the search mission continues.

The plane, which was carrying 66 people on board, is believed to have crashed into the Mediterranean Sea early this morning. 

The Airbus 320 is thought to have dropped 22,000 feet and spun "sharply" before disappearing from radar around 10 miles into Egyptian airspace, as it flew from Paris to Cairo this morning. The aircraft is believed to have crashed off Greek island Karpathos, and there are reports that debris has been found 230 miles south of the island. 

The two objects have been reported as red and white, or possibly orange. They were spotted near to an area where a signal was emitted earlier, Reuters is reporting.

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A source told Reuters: “All causes for the disaster are open, whether it is a major technical fault or a terrorist action or any other circumstance. This will be ascertained when we inspect the plane's wreckage and transcribe its black boxes."

Jean-Paul Troadec, the former head of the BEA, France’s air accident investigation, is reported to have said the disappearance has “almost certainly” been caused by an “attack”.

He told Europe 1: "The team said nothing, they did not react, so it was very probably a brutal event and we can certainly think about an attack."

"The information we have gathered – ministers, members of government and, of course, the Egyptian authorities – confirm, sadly, that it has crashed. It is lost," French president Francois Hollande said in a press conference.

Special teams from the Egyptian armed forces have been deployed to the site "for inspection and rescue", the state airline said.

The cause is not yet known. Egyptian Prime Minister Sherif Ismail said it was too early to rule out any explanation for the incident. 

"We cannot exclude anything at this time or confirm anything. All the search operations must be concluded so we can know the cause," he said. 

EgyptAir confirmed there were 56 passengers, including one British, 15 French and 30 Egyptian nationals, on board. Three of the passengers were children, including one infant. Also missing are seven crew members and three security personnel.

This afternoon, foreign secretary Philip Hammond said: 

"My thoughts are with the family and friends of all those missing following the disappearance of EgyptAir’s flight MS804. We are in close contact with Egyptian and French authorities and have offered the Egyptian authorities our support in their search and rescue efforts.

"We know that one British passport holder boarded the flight in Paris and our staff are providing support and assistance to the family at this difficult time. We will continue to help in any way we can."

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The plane had taken off from Paris at 11.09pm local time. It was due to land at Cairo shortly after 3am local time. The pilot had 2,766 flying hours; the aircraft was manufactured in 2003 and had routine maintenance checks carried out in Cairo on Wednesday. 

Egyptair has set up a crisis centre and 30 family members have arrived at Cairo airport. 

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Egyptair said the plane was travelling at a height of 37,000ft and had entered Egyptian airspace when it went off radar.

In March, an Egyptair plane bound for Cairo was hijacked and diverted to Cyprus. All hostages were later released unharmed.

And last October a Russian plane flying from Sharm el-Sheikh crashed killing 224 passengers.