News

DATE=11/17/1999 TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT TITLE=EGYPT AIR / REACT (L) NUMBER=2-256266 BYLINE=SCOTT BOBB DATELINE=CAIRO CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: Egyptians are reacting with disbelief to indications that officials investigating the crash of Egypt Air flight 9-9-0 believe it may have been caused deliberately by one of the crew members. V-O-A Correspondent Scott Bobb in Cairo reports that many do not believe the religious verse uttered by one of the pilots demonstrates an intent to commit suicide. TEXT: Egyptians say the Koranic verse reportedly uttered by one of the pilots minutes before the plane began its death plunge is said in many stressful situations and does not necessarily indicate imminent death. Many expressed dismay at reports that investigators in the United States were preparing to hand over the case to the F-B-I, indicating they believe the crash was caused by a criminal act. The transfer was put on hold, however, after the Egyptian government protested. A delegation of senior Egyptian aviation officials flew to New York Wednesday to further examine the flight recorders. The flight recorders are said to indicate the plane possibly was deliberately put into a fatal dive. The recorders were recovered from the bottom of the sea after a two- week salvage effort. Investigators have not revealed the exact contents of the flight recorders, but sources have told the news media that the voice recorder indicates one of the pilots, who had been left alone in the cockpit shortly after takeoff, recited a Koranic verse. They say the automatic pilot was then turned off and the nose of the plane was pointed into a steep, fatal dive. Experts say this pattern does not appear to have been caused by mechanical failure, leading to speculation that the crash was caused deliberately by one of the pilots. The news has heightened the anguish of colleagues and family members of the crew, who are still grieving over their loss. Colleagues who worked with them emphasize that the pilots were professionals in good health who would never deliberately sacrifice the lives of hundreds of passengers. Family members, meanwhile, described the pilots as devoted family men and they vehemently deny any one of them could have been suicidal. Egypt Air flight 9-9-0 crashed into the sea shortly after takeoff from New York City more than two weeks ago, killing all 217 people aboard. (Signed) NEB/SB/JWH/LTD/JP 17-Nov-1999 10:47 AM EDT (17-Nov-1999 1547 UTC) NNNN Source: Voice of America .