DATE=10/31/1999
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=EGYPT PLANE CRASH (L)
NUMBER=2-255666
BYLINE=SCOTT BOBB
DATELINE=CAIRO
CONTENT=

VOICED AT:

  ////// WATCH FOR UPDATES AND ALTERNATE REPORTS FROM 
U-S BASED CORRESPONDENTS. /////

INTRO: Rescue workers in the United States say they 
have recovered one body from what is believed to be 
the crash site of an Egypt Airlines passenger plane.  
The plane disappeared early Sunday shortly after 
takeoff from New York City.  Correspondent Scott Bobb 
reports from Cairo that Egyptian officials have begun 
to release details about the people on board.

TEXT:  The Chairman of Egypt Airlines, Mohamed Fahim 
Rayan, told reporters at Cairo airport (Sunday) there 
were 214 passengers on the plane, including two 
infants and 15 crew members.

He said among them were 62 Egyptians, three Syrians, 
two Sudanese, and one Chilean.  He said the company 
did not have the nationalities of the remaining 
passengers, but said presumably many of them were 
American.

Mr. Rayan said he did not believe the crash was the 
result of a criminal or terrorist act.  He said the 
10-year-old Boeing 7-6-7 was in good condition and had 
no record of mechanical problems.

Officials say a team of Egyptian specialists is to go 
to the United States to participate in the 
investigation.

/// OPT ///  Egypt Air Flight-990 originated Saturday 
in Los Angeles, on the U-S west coast.  It made a 
scheduled stop at New York City's J-F-K airport and 
departed shortly after midnight Sunday, headed for 
Cairo.  Air controllers say they lost radar and radio 
contact with the plane less than one-hour after 
takeoff, when the plane was about 100-kilometers off 
the coast of the northeastern state of Massachusetts.  
Within hours, a massive search by air and sea was 
launched.  ///END OPT ///

The plane was due to land Sunday afternoon in Cairo.  
As news began to spread through this populous city, 
anxious families and friends gathered at the airport.  
They were taken to a private room where they were 
shown a passenger list.  Medical personnel were nearby 
to help those who were overcome with grief upon seeing 
that, despite their hope to the contrary, their loved 
one was on the flight.

            /// REST OPT ///

Officials say they plan to take some family members to 
the United States to identify possible bodies.

The disaster occurred in the same region where a 
Swissair flight crashed more than one-year ago, and 
near where a TWA flight exploded in the air two-years 
before that.  The area is part of a commonly used 
flight path taken by large planes gaining altitude as 
they prepare to cross the arctic on flights to Europe 
and the Middle East.   (SIGNED)

NEB/SB/DW/RAE



31-Oct-1999 12:20 PM EDT (31-Oct-1999 1720 UTC)
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Source: Voice of America
.