ARMENIAN A-320 DISINTEGRATED AFTER HITTING BLACK SEA – PROBE
RIA Novosti, Russia
June 19 2006
MOSCOW, June 19 (RIA Novosti) – An Armenian airliner that crashed
into the Black Sea off Russia’s coast early last month disintegrated
after hitting the water, the Transportation Ministry said Monday.
The Airbus came down in stormy weather on May 3 with the loss of all
113 passengers and crew.
"The flight recorders from the Armavia Airlines A-320 have shown that
the plane did not disintegrate in the air," a ministry’s statement
said. "The engines were operating until the plane hit the water."
"The plane had enough fuel to complete the flight safely and the
autopilot was off in the last minute," the ministry said.
The emergency commission has started decoding and analyzing flight
data recorders, which include modeling the flight on an A-320 trainer.
The commission will conclude on the reasons behind the crash and make
flight safety recommendations, the ministry said.