Air France A447

Air France in race to replace Airbus speed monitors

Article published on the 2009-06-09 Latest update 2009-06-09 13:33 TU

Airbus A330
(Photo : Air France/Reuters)

All air-speed monitors on Air France's Airbus A330 and A340 will be replaced following the tragic Atlantic accident a week ago that killed 228 people. There is speculation the sensors may have iced up during a storm at altitude, sending false data to the pilots.

The doomed AF447 flight from Rio to Paris which crashed into the Atlantic last Monday broadcast a series of 24 automatic error messages as it systems shut down one-by-one.

French investigators say this would have sent conflicting data to the pilots about the speed of the aircraft. The head of the French air accident investigation agency has confirmed that the missing jet had experienced a problem calculating its air speed.

One French union, Alter, which represents a minority of Air France pilots, has criticised the airline for not taking the two types of aircraft out of service until the monitors have been replaced.

It called on flight crews to boycott the planes - hundreds of which are in circulation around the world.

Meanwhile, the global police agency Interpol will be on hand to help French and Brazilian officials identify victims of the accident. So far only 24 bodies have been recovered.

Interpol will identify victims using DNA samples, fingerprints, medical records, tattoos and other clues.