Egypt passenger plane disappears on its way from the US to Cairo
Egypt, Local, 10/31/1999

An EgyptAir Flight 990 carrying some 199 multinational passengers leaving the US John F. Kennedy (JFK) airport to Egypt is missing after it disappeared from tracking radars and lost radio contact at about (2:00 am. USE time Sunday) off the coast of Massachusetts - USA.New York Port Authority Director of Aviation Robert Kelly said the Boeing 767 plane started its flight in Los Angeles carrying 32 passengers on its way to JFK Airport where it arrived slightly before 1:00 am where it picked up an additional 167 passengers all heading to Cairo - Egypt. The plane left JFK Airport at 1:20 pm and was considered lost at about 2:00 AM eastern time, some 40 minutes after takeoff.Director of Aviation Robert Kelly said that 199 passengers were on board plus a 15 person crew members adding up to a total of 214 people.The coast guard stated that debris has been found some 65 miles from South East of Nantucket placing the debris in international waters. The debris include seat and flotation cushions said the officials. Kelly added that some bodies have been recovered , but that the number is not determined as yet.The Coast Guard officials have denied having received a distress signal from the plane saying the Coast Guard "has not received such a signal nor has the FAA."FBI Assistant Director in New York Lewis Schiliro said about possible previous threats regarding this plane "we have no specific information."
CNN reported that its sources discounted news reports about a previous threat during the last month against EgyptAir saying that the person who issued a threatening letter was already in jail and was not a factor.A U.S. representative from Air Travelers Association which rates airlines said the association gives EgyptAir its highest grade "A" for the quality of its safety and maintenance.
US authorities are continuing the search and a full scale investigation lead by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has begun to determine what has happened. New York Port Authority Director of Aviation Robert Kelly said that it will be several months before the cause of the incident is determined since fragments have to be recovered from deep water and assembled for examination.
Families can call EgyptAir at 800-243-1094 for information.

Previous Stories:
  Hijacked airplane returns to Cairo   (10/20/1999)
  Egyptian jet hijacked   (10/19/1999)

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