No indications Americans on board crashed EgyptAir plane: State Department

Record ID: 102935

  • Title: No indications Americans on board crashed EgyptAir plane: State Department
  • Date: 19th May 2016
  • Summary: WASHINGTON, D.C., UNITED STATES (MAY 19, 2016) (STATE TV) U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESMAN JOHN KIRBY WALKING TO PODIUM REPORTER ASKING QUESTION (SOUNDBITE) (English) U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESMAN JOHN KIRBY, SAYING: "It's just too soon to know. Investigators are just getting to work on this, and I don't think it would be prudent for us to speculate one way or the other right now." REPORTER ASKING QUESTION (SOUNDBITE) (English) U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESMAN, JOHN KIRBY, SAYING: "I'm not aware of any capturing through electronic means - let me try to be as expansive as I can - any capturing through electronic means of other imagery, audio, or any other electronic transmissions that would lead us to have any greater clarity, clarity about what happened (REPORTER ASKING OFF CAMERA 'DOES THAT INCLUDE SATELLITES?') As far as I know it includes everything." REPORTER ASKING QUESTION (SOUNDBITE) (English) U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESMAN JOHN KIRBY, SAYING: "So we still don't have any indications at all that there were American citizens on board. Obviously we're still working our way through this. But at this time we know of no American citizens that were on board the plane." REPORTER ASKING QUESTION
  • Embargoed: 3rd June 2016 19:09
  • Keywords: crash Egypt state Americans victims plane air
  • Location: WASHINGTON, D.C., UNITED STATES
  • City: WASHINGTON, D.C., UNITED STATES
  • Country: USA
  • Reuters ID: LVA0014IH7EX3
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text:A U.S. State Department spokesman on Thursday (May 19) said there was no indication American citizens were on board the EgyptAir plane that crashed into the Mediterranean en route from Paris to Cairo, and it was too early to speculate on the cause of the crash.
    "It's just too soon to know," John Kirby said.
    "Investigators are just getting to work on this, and I don't think it would be prudent for us to speculate one way or the other right now."
    Kirby said the United States offered investigative help to the government of Egypt as well as aircraft to aid in the recovery.
    He said thus far there was little or no surveillance material to help investigators.
    "I'm not aware of any capturing through electronic means - let me try to be as expansive as I can - any capturing through electronic means of other imagery, audio, or any other electronic transmissions that would lead us to have any greater clarity, clarity about what happened," Kirby said.
    The flight carried 66 passengers and crew.
    "So we still don't have any indications at all that there were American citizens on board. Obviously we're still working our way through this. But at this time we know of no American citizens that were on board the plane," Kirby said.
    The Egyptian civil aviation ministry said Greek authorities had found "floating material" and life jackets likely to be from the plane. Greek defense sources told Reuters they had found pieces of plastic and two life-vests in the sea 230 miles (370 km) south of the island of Crete.
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