Smoke detected on Egyptair flight MS804 before crash

Sensors onboard Egyptair Flight MS804 transmitted that they had detected smoke in the aircraft's lavatory shortly before it crashed, according to a publication specialising in aviation incidents.

The news may assist investigators who are sifting through the wreckage of the plane, the wreckage of which has been found in the sea, 180 miles north of Alexandria. The aircraft's cockpit voice recorder and data recorder – known as the “black box” - is yet to be found.

Data extracted from the A320's Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System (ACARS) and published in the Aviation Herald indicates the presence of smoke on board. ACARS is a digital datalink system that transmits short messages between the aircraft and ground stations via airband radio or satellite.

That data shows smoke being detected in the aircraft lavatory at 2.26 am, with a second sensor going off a minute later with further faults until 2.29 am, when the system ceased recording. According to the Wall Street Journal, people “familiar with the matter” say that the alerts could be an indication of a fault in the flight control system.

Seven messages were received in the course of three minutes, starting at 2.26am Cairo time. Three concern window sensors, while two mention smoke in a lavatory and in the avionics bay, which is underneath the flight deck. 

While the presence of smoke inside the Airbus A320 would be consistent with an explosion some experts believe that it is also evidence of some form of technical fault. Other aviation experts point out that a number of other possibilities, such as rapid decompression are not ruled out.

No terrorist group has yet claimed responsibility for the disaster.