By nightfall, searchers had retrieved debris and one body, but held out little hope of finding survivors in the chilly Atlantic waters.
Authorities said there was no distress call from the pilots before the Boeing 767 plummeted to the sea in two minutes from its cruising altitude of 33,000 feet. Though the FBI and other intelligence agencies began checking on the possibility of sabotage, President Clinton and other officials said there was no immediate indication of foul play.
Searchers found two partially inflated life rafts, life jackets, seat cushions and other small debris, none with any burn marks, said Coast Guard Rear Adm. Richard Larrabee. A finding of such marks on debris could suggest the possibility of a fire o
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| AP PHOTO A woman cries at the Cairo, Egypt airport yesterday after being informed that her relative was among the 217 passengers killed in the EgyptAir Flight 990 crash. |
The air search was suspended after dark, but ships continued scouring the area. The Coast Guard said chances of anyone surviving more than 12 hours in the 58-degree water were slim.
A Navy salvage ship, the USS Grapple, and Navy divers were leaving Norfolk, Va., last night and are expected to join the search by late today, with orders to take debris and remains to a Navy base in Rhode Island.
U.S. officials indicated a majority of the 199 passengers on Flight 990 were Americans, including a group of 54 people bound for a 14-day trip to Egypt and the Nile. Alan Lewis, chief executive of the Boston-based travel agency Grand Circle Corp., said most of the group members were from Colorado, Arizona and the Pacific Northwest.
The plane started its flight in Los Angeles and stopped at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport. It took off again at 1:19 a.m. and went down at 1:52 a.m., roughly 60 miles south of Nantucket. The Coast Guard deployed ships, reconnaissance planes and helicopters to search an area of about 36 square miles, in waters about 270 feet deep.
State-owned EgyptAir, confronted with the worst crash in its history, said non-American passengers included 62 Egyptians, two Sudanese, three Syrians and one Chilean. There were 18 crew members, EgyptAir said.
It was the fourth time in three years that a major search operation was launched in the region for a plane lost at sea. The series of crashes began with TWA Flight 800 off Long Island in July 1996, followed by Swissair Flight 111 off Nova Scotia in September 1998 and the single-engine plane carrying John F. Kennedy Jr., his wife and her sister off Martha's Vineyard in July.
EgyptAir Chair Mohammed Fahim Rayan was asked about reports that the Federal Aviation Administration had warned EgyptAir of a terrorist threat.
"We take all precautions and we have plenty of warnings from everybody, including the FAA," he replied.
Armed security guards routinely fly on EgyptAir flights. After the airline's passengers go through the normal airport security check, they are again subjected to baggage search just before they board the aircraft.
Jim Hall, chair of the National Transportation Safety Board, said EgyptAir and Egyptian government officials were heading to the United States to assist in the investigation.
Clinton, about to depart for Europe for Middle East peace talks, said there was "no evidence ... at this time" of foul play linked to the crash.
"I think it's better if people draw no conclusions until we know something," said Clinton, who called Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to offer condolences and U.S. assistance.
At the Cairo airport, sobs echoed though a restaurant where officials set up an information center for passengers' relatives.
11-01-99
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