EgyptAir crash black box 'found', French officials claim

Credit: PA

A flight recorder from the EgyptAir flight that crashed last month has been found, according to French air accident investigators.

Signals from one of the black boxes on the flight were detected by a French vessel, LaPlace, which was searching an area of the Mediterranean where the plane is thought to have come down.

"A signal from a flight recorder has been detected," a spokesperson from France's Bureau of Investigations and Analysis said.

Egyptian authorities said earlier a French ship had picked up signals, and that they were presumed to be from a flight recorder.

A specialist vessel carrying robots able to dive up to 3,000m is set to arrive next week to retrieve the device.

Wreckage from the aircraft has been recovered but much of the plane is believed to be under the sea Credit: Reuters

EgyptAir flight MS804 crashed on 19 May while travelling from Paris to Cairo, killing all 66 people on board.

Wreckage from the A320 aircraft and some human remains have been recovered, but the bulk of the plane, including the black boxes, is believe to be under the sea.

Locator pings emitted by flight data and cockpit voice recorders, known as the black boxes, can be picked up from deep under water.

Clothing and part of a plane chair have been found. Credit: Reuters

The French ship Laplace is equipped with three detectors designed to detect and localise signals from the flight recorders, which are believed to be at a depth of about 3,000 metres under water.

Nearly two weeks after the crash off Egypt's northern coast, the cause of the tragedy has still not been determined.

Egyptian officials believe terrorism is a more likely explanation for the crash than equipment failure.

But human or technical error have not been ruled out.