Egypt Ministry Cannot Confirm Smoke Aboard EgyptAir as First Photos Posted

Egypt’s Ministry of Civil Aviation said Saturday it could not corroborate France’s Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for civil aviation safety (BEA) confirmation of smoke aboard the EgyptAir plane before it disappeared from radar screens on Thursday.

CAIRO (Sputnik) – The ministry’s denial, broadcast by the Egyptian Al Arabiya satellite channel, casts doubt on the BEA spokesman’s remarks made earlier in the day that flight MS804’s Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System (ACARS) messages indicated smoke was detected on board the ill-fated plane.

The Egyptian Army, meanwhile, posted first photographs from search operations of what it said was the missing plane wreckage and the passengers’ belongings. The images depicted yellow life jackets, parts of passenger seats and blue seat covers with the word "EgyptAir" etched on a white patch.

Flight MS804 was en route from Paris to Cairo when it disappeared from radar screens over the Mediterranean 10 miles into Egyptian airspace with 66 passengers, crew and security personnel on board.

On Friday, media reports claimed there were smoke alerts aboard the EgyptAir plane minutes before it crashed.

EgyptAir has said via Twitter that the Egyptian Armed Forces have discovered the wreckage and personal items from flight MS804 295 kilometers (183 miles) from the coast of Alexandria.