Incident Overview
On May 18, 2016, at 21:21 UTC, EgyptAir flight MSR804, an Airbus A320-232 registered as SU-GCC, departed from Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris, France, on a scheduled flight to Cairo International Airport, Egypt. The aircraft carried 66 persons, including crew and passengers.
At 23:22, while at an altitude of 37,000 feet, the aircraft entered Greek airspace and was cleared to proceed directly to position KUMBI, the boundary between Greek and Egyptian airspace. At 00:30, approximately seven nautical miles south of KUMBI and after entering Egyptian airspace, the aircraft disappeared from both Greek and Egyptian radar. Multiple attempts by Greek and Egyptian air traffic control to contact the aircraft were unsuccessful. An Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) signal was transmitted, and search and rescue operations were initiated.
Wreckage and Recorder Analysis
Search efforts recovered human remains, wreckage, and both flight recorders. The Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) captured the co-pilot calling out "Fire," followed by a cabin flight attendant in the cockpit also calling "fire," and the captain simultaneously calling "fire" and requesting a fire extinguisher. The Flight Data Recorder (FDR) showed that a "lavatory smoke warning" was triggered first, followed by an "avionics smoke warning" 46 seconds later. Minutes later, several computers failed sequentially.
Wreckage examination revealed that cabin parts surrounding the forward galley area exhibited thermal effects consistent with fire outside the cockpit. Correlation of FDR and CVR data indicated that the fire was first announced by the co-pilot, then 44 seconds later the lavatory smoke warning activated, and 46 seconds after that, the avionics smoke warning activated, suggesting the fire originated outside the cockpit before triggering these warnings.
Investigation Findings
The Egyptian judicial authority formed a committee that concluded an explosive device had been placed inside catering trolleys in the galley behind the cockpit. Forensic medicine reports indicated the presence of explosive material on human remains and attached wreckage pieces. Additionally, some remains showed heat effects. The investigation committee determined that fire and smoke due to explosive materials located at the forward galley, just aft of the rear section of the cockpit, generated pressure that propagated and affected the right-hand side crew oxygen system. The oxygen flow enriched the fire, rendering the aircraft flight path uncontrollable as both the aircraft and flight crew were severely affected by fire and smoke. The aircraft crashed into the sea with no survivors.
Safety Recommendations
The investigation committee issued four safety recommendations to enhance aviation safety. The probable cause of the accident was determined to be an explosion of an improvised device in the forward galley, leading to a fire that was intensified by an oxygen leak, resulting in loss of control and impact with the sea.