Air France Airbus Vanishes Over the Atlantic

Air France plane with 228 people aboard goes missing

An Air France Airbus carrying 228 people from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to Paris, France, has disappeared over the Atlantic.

An Air France Airbus 330-200 carrying 228 people on which was flying on the Rio de Janeiro – Paris Charles de Gaulle route has vanished over the Atlantic, the airline said.

Distraught relatives and friends of passengers of Air France flight AF447 arrive at the crisis centre at Charles de Gaulle airport near Paris, June 1, 2009. REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes. Image may be subject to copyright.

The Brazilian air force conducted a search mission over the Atlantic Ocean looking for the missing plane, Brazilian television said.

Flight AF 447 with 216 passengers and 12 crew reportedly left Rio de Janeiro on Sunday at 19:00 local time and was scheduled to land in Paris on Monday at 11:15 (05:15 EDT).

Air France announced on Monday that it had no “news from flight AF 447, which was flying on the Rio de Janeiro – Paris Charles de Gaulle route and was scheduled to arrive at 11.15 a.m. today [05:15 EDT).”

Air France Airbus 330-200. Airbus seems to be a plane with an identity crisis: Submarine envy. Air France Airbus A330-200 F-GZCG- Paris CDG, France.  Copyright (c) Filimages – Philippe Jeandy (dated 14-JAN-2007 ).

It’s not yet known when or where the plane vanished, but it seems the Gremlins were pulling one of their usual stunts on Air France because, regardless of the timeline, both Sunday  (May 31) and Monday (June 1) were odd days the month. See Second Airbus Plunges into Water.

Despite this oddity, flying airbus is still twice safer statistically on odd days of the month than even.

Related Link:

• Second Airbus Plunges into Water
• Air New Zealand Flying Coffin Crashes in the Mediterranean
• US Airways Plane Goes Down in Hudson River