Air france flight with 228 passengers on board is missing

Air France flight 447 from Rio de Janeiro to Paris' Charles de Gaulle Airport is suspected of having crashed after disappearing from radar while flying over the Atlantic Ocean. The aircraft, an Airbus 330-200 carrying 216 passengers and 12 crewmembers, left Rio de Janeiro on the 31st May at 1900 local time (2200 GMT). The flight was scheduled to land in Paris at 1110 local time. The aircraft had automatically issued a signal indicating a electrical circuit malfunction after it passed into a storm four hours into the flight; however, no manual emergency transmission was made. Early reports indicate that the aircraft may have been hit by lightning. Brazil's air force has already begun a search and rescue mission, beginning over Fernando de Noronha Island, located approximately 215 miles off of Brazil's northeastern coast. Given the large area that will have to be searched, it is probable that it will be some time before anything definitive is known about what occurred with the flight.