Debris recovered from Air France plane forced to land in Labrador

FILE: The debris fell from an Air France jet during a Paris-to-Los Angeles flight that was diverted to Goose Bay, N.L., last month following major damage to one of the plane’s engines. (Photo by Chuks Spotting – Aviation Photography/Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0)

PARIS — Aviation investigators say pieces of an engine lost by an Air France plane that was forced to land in Labrador about a week ago have been recovered in Greenland.

The debris fell from an Air France jet during a Paris-to-Los Angeles flight that was diverted to Goose Bay, N.L., last month following major damage to one of the plane’s engines.

France’s BEA air accident agency says it used flight recorder data to identify a search area in Greenland for the parts.

The agency says a helicopter of Air Greenland recovered pieces of the engine on Friday, which are being forwarded to French aviation investigators.

The BEA says searchers are trying to find other fallen engine parts, but snowy conditions in Greenland have hampered the recovery effort.

French officials say observations of the aircraft suggest the engine’s fan detached during the flight.