Egypt is at the centre of international attention in May 2016 as EgyptAir Flight MS804 disappears from radar while travelling from Paris to Cairo.
The Airbus A320 is carrying 66 people, including 56 passengers and 10 crew members, when it loses contact with air traffic controllers over the eastern Mediterranean. The aircraft is travelling in Egyptian airspace when it disappears, prompting an international search operation involving Egypt, France and Greece.
The disappearance quickly becomes a major international news story as relatives gather at Cairo International Airport and authorities begin searching the Mediterranean for the missing aircraft.
Wreckage is subsequently recovered from the sea, while investigators examine the circumstances surrounding the crash. Information from the aircraft’s flight recorders indicates that smoke and signs of fire are present in the final moments of the flight.
Authorities investigate several possible explanations for the disaster. Early reports raise the possibility of terrorism, but investigators do not immediately establish a definitive cause.
The tragedy claims the lives of all 66 people on board and generates widespread international coverage because of the aircraft’s route between two major global cities.
The incident remains one of Egypt’s most significant aviation disasters of 2016.
