Pilot's cigarette sparked fire onboard EgyptAir jet, killed 66, investigation finds

• Image Credit: Internet

• Apr 27, 2022 | Dhupali Das

The aircraft's black box was discovered in the deep ocean near Greece following a search operation.

Digital Desk: The 2016 EgyptAir flight disaster that killed all 66 persons on board was caused by a cockpit fire that sparked due to the pilot's cigarette, an investigation said.  The pilot of the ill-fated flight MS804 smoked a cigarette in the cockpit, causing oxygen seeping from an emergency mask to combust, a report by French aviation officials said, according to New York Post.

Reportedly, last month, an official report of 134 pages was submitted to the Paris Court of Appeal.

The report further stated that the Egyptian pilots smoked in the cockpit regularly, and the airline had not stopped the action at the time of the tragedy.

The Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera even claimed that a microphone on the mask recorded a hissing sound.

In May 2016, the Airbus A320 was flying from Paris to Cairo. Under unknown circumstances, the plane crashed into the eastern Mediterranean Sea near the island of Crete.

Among the deceased, there were 40 Egyptians and 15 French nationals. Moreover, two Iraqis, two Canadians, and one passenger each from Algeria, Belgium, the United Kingdom, Chad, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, and Sudan boarded the plane.

The plane was only put into service in 2003, making it relatively new for an aircraft with a 30- to 40-year operational life.

During the accident day, it was flying at 37,000 feet (11,000 meters); however, it suddenly disappeared at around 130 nautical miles off the Greek island of Karpathos. 

The aircraft's black box was discovered in the deep ocean near Greece following a search operation.

The Egyptian officials claimed that the jet was brought down in a terrorist strike, although no terror group claimed responsibility.