Two bodies, briefcase from Air France flight recovered

SAO PAULO, BRAZIL – Brazilian Air Force officials say they have picked up the bodies of two men as well as some private possessions in the area where an Air France Airbus disappeared over the Atlantic Ocean Sunday night.

The two bodies were recovered from the sea 849 kilometers (527 miles) northeast of Fernando de Noronha, officials said. That is 69.5 kilometers (43 miles) from where the Air France flight last radioed its position before disappearing from radar screens.

“We picked up two bodies, both male, unidentified,” Col. Jorge Amaral, an Air Force spokesman, told reporters at a Saturday press conference in Recife, the coastal city where much of the search is being coordinated.

A Brazilian navy ship also picked up a backpack with a vaccination card inside and a leather briefcase containing an Air France boarding pass. The boarding pass bore the flight number AF447, that of the downed flight.

An airline seat was also retrieved from the water and Brazilian officials said they have sent the seat’s serial number to Air France officials for them to confirm that it comes from the missing plane.

Officials said the search was continuing, although they were being hampered by rain and high seas. Currently, there are five Brazilian navy vessels participating in the operation, along with 12 Brazilian and two French aircraft.

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