NTSB Advisory
National Transportation Safety Board
Washington, DC 20594
March 3, 2000

SAFETY BOARD TO RECOVER MORE EGYPTAIR FLIGHT 990 WRECKAGE

The following is a statement by National Transportation Safety Board Chairman Jim Hall:

As part of its ongoing investigation into the crash of EgyptAir flight 990, the National Transportation Safety Board has asked the U.S. Navy's Supervisor of Salvage and Diving to recover the remaining engine and, if possible, additional flight control components that were not recovered during the salvage operations in December 1999.

This effort is being undertaken to ensure that investigators will have access to all available wreckage and information that may assist them in determining the cause of the October 31, 1999 crash. As you may remember, an underwater survey of the debris field by a submarine following the December recovery mission indicated that operations with the Smit Pioneer were successful; the survey also identified the possible locations of other aircraft components that might prove helpful to investigators.

Once recovered, the wreckage will be taken to the facility at Quonset Point, Rhode Island, where the previously recovered flight 990 wreckage has been examined and stored. The planned recovery operation will begin on or about March 18, 2000, and will take up to 10 days to complete. Tentative plans call for the operations to be conducted with the Carolyn Chouest and a remote operated vehicle.

NTSB Press Officer: Keith Holloway, (202) 314-6100