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| Survivor speaks of Yemenia crash | Survivor speaks of Yemenia crash |
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| A 12-year-old girl thought to be the only survivor of the Yemenia air crash has told how she was thrown into the ocean and watched her aircraft sink. | A 12-year-old girl thought to be the only survivor of the Yemenia air crash has told how she was thrown into the ocean and watched her aircraft sink. |
| Baya Bakari told her father at a hospital in Yemen that she heard voices around her in the Indian Ocean, but could not see anyone. | Baya Bakari told her father at a hospital in Yemen that she heard voices around her in the Indian Ocean, but could not see anyone. |
| She was found clinging to debris some two hours after the crash. | She was found clinging to debris some two hours after the crash. |
| The plane, going to the Comoros Islands from Yemen's capital Sanaa, came down in bad weather with 153 on board. | The plane, going to the Comoros Islands from Yemen's capital Sanaa, came down in bad weather with 153 on board. |
| I kissed them both, then my wife turned around, she looked at me and she waved... For my wife it was the last time Father of survivor Baya Bakari Are children more likely to survive? Yemen airline's safety questioned In pictures: Yemeni plane crash How to survive a plane crash | I kissed them both, then my wife turned around, she looked at me and she waved... For my wife it was the last time Father of survivor Baya Bakari Are children more likely to survive? Yemen airline's safety questioned In pictures: Yemeni plane crash How to survive a plane crash |
| Many of the passengers were travelling to the Comoros Islands but had begun their journey in Paris or Marseille on another jet operated by Yemenia, the national airline of Yemen, before boarding flight IY626 in Sanaa. | Many of the passengers were travelling to the Comoros Islands but had begun their journey in Paris or Marseille on another jet operated by Yemenia, the national airline of Yemen, before boarding flight IY626 in Sanaa. |
| Find out more about the black box | Find out more about the black box |
| The EU and France have both said they highlighted safety concerns over Yemenia planes and said the jet that crashed had not flown into EU airspace since 2007. | |
| But no official cause for the crash has yet been found. Earlier on Wednesday a French government minister in the Comoros capital, Moroni, said that a detected signal thought to be from one of the plane's "black box" flight recorders was in fact a distress beacon. | But no official cause for the crash has yet been found. Earlier on Wednesday a French government minister in the Comoros capital, Moroni, said that a detected signal thought to be from one of the plane's "black box" flight recorders was in fact a distress beacon. |
| 'True miracle' | 'True miracle' |
| Ms Bakari, who lives in Paris with her family, remains in hospital in Moroni being treated for injuries said to include a fractured collarbone and burns. French officials said late on Wednesday that she was 12 years old, contradicting earlier reports she was 14. | Ms Bakari, who lives in Paris with her family, remains in hospital in Moroni being treated for injuries said to include a fractured collarbone and burns. French officials said late on Wednesday that she was 12 years old, contradicting earlier reports she was 14. |
| Speaking from Paris her father, Kassim Bakari, said she was thrown from the plane as it hit the water. He said she clearly recalled the chaos of her time in the water. | Speaking from Paris her father, Kassim Bakari, said she was thrown from the plane as it hit the water. He said she clearly recalled the chaos of her time in the water. |
| See large map and timeline Ties that bind: Comoros and France | See large map and timeline Ties that bind: Comoros and France |
| "She said, 'Papa, we saw the plane going down in the water. I was in the dark, I couldn't see a thing. | "She said, 'Papa, we saw the plane going down in the water. I was in the dark, I couldn't see a thing. |
| "'[And] on top of that daddy, I can't swim well and I held onto something, but don't really know what'. | "'[And] on top of that daddy, I can't swim well and I held onto something, but don't really know what'. |
| "She's a very timid girl, I never thought she would escape like that," he said, describing her as "fragile" and barely able to swim. | "She's a very timid girl, I never thought she would escape like that," he said, describing her as "fragile" and barely able to swim. |
| Mr Bakari recalled how he said goodbye to his wife and daughter at the airport as they headed to the Comoros. | Mr Bakari recalled how he said goodbye to his wife and daughter at the airport as they headed to the Comoros. |
| "I kissed them both, then my wife turned around, she looked at me and she waved, and my daughter she didn't do anything, and that was the last time I saw my wife alive, because my daughter... I will see her again I hope , but for my wife it was the last time." | "I kissed them both, then my wife turned around, she looked at me and she waved, and my daughter she didn't do anything, and that was the last time I saw my wife alive, because my daughter... I will see her again I hope , but for my wife it was the last time." |
| French officials in Moroni praised the girl's courage. International Co-operation Minister Alain Joyandet described her rescue as a "true miracle". | French officials in Moroni praised the girl's courage. International Co-operation Minister Alain Joyandet described her rescue as a "true miracle". |
| "She is a courageous young girl. She really showed an absolutely incredible physical and moral strength." | "She is a courageous young girl. She really showed an absolutely incredible physical and moral strength." |
| An uncle, Ali Abdou, who visited the girl in hospital in Moroni, told the BBC she did not yet know that her mother had died. | An uncle, Ali Abdou, who visited the girl in hospital in Moroni, told the BBC she did not yet know that her mother had died. |
| She was scheduled to be transferred back to Paris for treatment later on Wednesday, he added. | She was scheduled to be transferred back to Paris for treatment later on Wednesday, he added. |
| "She is conscious, speaking well, [she] is ok. She was joking, she was chatting, we laughed together. | "She is conscious, speaking well, [she] is ok. She was joking, she was chatting, we laughed together. |
| "It's a miracle. It was God's will." | "It's a miracle. It was God's will." |
| 'No black box' | 'No black box' |
| Earlier, a French government minister reversed earlier claims that one of the plane's black box recorders had been found. | Earlier, a French government minister reversed earlier claims that one of the plane's black box recorders had been found. |
| Comorans in France are angry at Yemenia's safety record | Comorans in France are angry at Yemenia's safety record |
| Mr Joyandet, the French minister in Moroni, said signals picked up by rescuers came from a distress beacon. Most aircraft have a flight data recorder and a cockpit voice recorder. | Mr Joyandet, the French minister in Moroni, said signals picked up by rescuers came from a distress beacon. Most aircraft have a flight data recorder and a cockpit voice recorder. |
| "The Transall (military plane) that picked up an acoustic signal did not, despite what was said this morning, detect the beacons of the flight recorders, but rather what appear to be its distress beacons," Mr Joyandet said in Moroni, the Comoros capital, AFP news agency reported. | "The Transall (military plane) that picked up an acoustic signal did not, despite what was said this morning, detect the beacons of the flight recorders, but rather what appear to be its distress beacons," Mr Joyandet said in Moroni, the Comoros capital, AFP news agency reported. |
| There were 66 French nationals among the passengers. Most of the rest were Comorans, and most had flown on a different Yemenia aircraft from Paris or Marseille before boarding flight IY626 in Sanaa. | There were 66 French nationals among the passengers. Most of the rest were Comorans, and most had flown on a different Yemenia aircraft from Paris or Marseille before boarding flight IY626 in Sanaa. |
| A French vessel has been sent to the site to start recovery operations, she added, and French rescue teams are involved in the search for survivors. | A French vessel has been sent to the site to start recovery operations, she added, and French rescue teams are involved in the search for survivors. |
| However, no-one from the plane has been confirmed alive apart from Baya Bakari, and rescuers say chances of finding more survivors are slim. | However, no-one from the plane has been confirmed alive apart from Baya Bakari, and rescuers say chances of finding more survivors are slim. |
| Angry protest | Angry protest |
| The French transport ministry said on Tuesday that the Airbus 310 plane which crashed had been banned from France because of "irregularities". | The French transport ministry said on Tuesday that the Airbus 310 plane which crashed had been banned from France because of "irregularities". |
| France said the plane had been banned from its airspace | France said the plane had been banned from its airspace |
| But Yemenia responded by criticising "false information and speculation about technical problems" on the plane. | But Yemenia responded by criticising "false information and speculation about technical problems" on the plane. |
| Several Comoran expatriates angry with what they see as the poor state of the company's aircraft tried to stop passengers from checking in for another Yemenia flight leaving Paris Charles de Gaulle airport for Sanaa. | Several Comoran expatriates angry with what they see as the poor state of the company's aircraft tried to stop passengers from checking in for another Yemenia flight leaving Paris Charles de Gaulle airport for Sanaa. |
| About 60 people failed to check in, reports said, but it was not clear how many did so as a result of the protest. | About 60 people failed to check in, reports said, but it was not clear how many did so as a result of the protest. |
| The crash was the second involving an Airbus aircraft in recent weeks. On 1 June an Air France Airbus 330 travelling from Rio de Janeiro to Paris plunged into the Atlantic, killing all 228 people on board. | The crash was the second involving an Airbus aircraft in recent weeks. On 1 June an Air France Airbus 330 travelling from Rio de Janeiro to Paris plunged into the Atlantic, killing all 228 people on board. |
| HOW THE BLACK BOX WORKS Flight data recorders, or "black boxes", are in fact orange or red.Commercial aircraft carry two. One logs performance and condition of aircraft in flight, another records conversations of crew and their contact with Air Traffic controllers during the flight. The Crash Survivable Memory Unit (CSMU) contains a memory board surrounded by thermal insulation and steel armour that can withstand a crash impact thousands of times the force of gravity and survive in the sea at depths of 20,000ft (6,096m). The CSMU is insulated to sustain temperatures up to 1,100C for up to an hour or "low" temperature fires of around 260C for 10 hours.An underwater locator beacon fitted on recorders emits continuous ultrasonic "ping" when they come into contact with water. The signal can reach the surface from depths of 14,000ft. | HOW THE BLACK BOX WORKS Flight data recorders, or "black boxes", are in fact orange or red.Commercial aircraft carry two. One logs performance and condition of aircraft in flight, another records conversations of crew and their contact with Air Traffic controllers during the flight. The Crash Survivable Memory Unit (CSMU) contains a memory board surrounded by thermal insulation and steel armour that can withstand a crash impact thousands of times the force of gravity and survive in the sea at depths of 20,000ft (6,096m). The CSMU is insulated to sustain temperatures up to 1,100C for up to an hour or "low" temperature fires of around 260C for 10 hours.An underwater locator beacon fitted on recorders emits continuous ultrasonic "ping" when they come into contact with water. The signal can reach the surface from depths of 14,000ft. |
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