Accident at Sharm-El-Sheik on 3 January 2004

The investigation led by the Egyptian authorities into the accident to the Flash Airlines Boeing 737 at Sharm-El-Sheik is continuing, with the participation of American (NTSB) and French (BEA) investigators and the collaboration of the manufacturer Boeing. Within this framework, the President of the Commission of Inquiry wished to issue the following statement.

On the basis of the facts and the initial analyses, it has been established that the accident is linked to what happened on board the airplane between takeoff and striking the sea. The work performed, as well as the first calculations and simulations carried out by the manufacturer, allowed us to reduce the area of research and to eliminate several possible causes of the accident, though none of this has so far enabled us to explain what happened on 3 January. Additional research has therefore been undertaken.

The Egyptian and French investigators have succeeded in significantly improving the quality of the readout of the magnetic tape on which the last exchanges in the cockpit are recorded. This improvement will facilitate the complete transcription of the verbal exchanges and the spectral analysis of the background noise, which may make it possible to identify the sound of some selectors heard during the flight.

Equally, work on flight simulators has been organized in France, with the support of Air France, and in the United States in order to better understand the airplane's maneuvers and the operations of the on-board systems. This work is currently under way. Additional information on the progress of the investigation will be released when this work is completed.