Thursday, June 18, 2009

Autopsies Suggest Midair Breakup

Nearly a month after it crashed, searchers managed to recover bits of debris of the doomed Air France Flight 447. Authorities continuously scour the Atlantic Ocean for more evidence.

As bodies have also been found, autopsies revealed that passengers had fractured legs, hips and arms suggesting that the plane broke up in mid air.

Theory of midflight breakup was supported by the intact bodies and multiple fractures, little or no clothing of victims, no signs of burns on the bodies and large pieces of aircraft.

Jack Casey, an aviation consultant in Washington, D.C. believed that most passengers were dead before they even hit the waters. His belief was supported by the fact that a significant number of body parts were recovered from the ocean. He added that the kind of windstream during midair breakup has a crushing effect like hitting a brick wall.

The possibility of an explosion is not ruled out either. If it was the lower fuselage that burnt or exploded, victims would not be exposed to any blast damage. Hence, just because the bodies recovered did not have burns does not mean no explosion happened.

As the plane’s black box is still missing, vital information could not have been verified and retrieved to determine the cause of the crush. Many believed, however, that the box was at the deep end of the ocean.

Recent developments made investigators hopeful to finally uncover the cause of the crash. Although still uncertain, the current situation is more advantageous than the first few days of the crash.

To date, this incident could be considered one of the worst both in aviation accidents and in accident investigations. As none survived, people could still speculate as to the reason of the crash until the plane’s flight data and voice recorders are found.

Although it happens rarely compared to land or water accidents, aviation accidents leave horrific and devastating results. If negligence was found to be attendant in the crash, the victim’s loved ones can file a personal injury case against the parties at fault. Justice may be recovered speedily if an aviation accident attorney is employed.