• Submitted by: manso
• Society
• 11 / 07 / 2010

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November 6, 2010, 04:42 pm ET. HAVANA, 6 Nov 2010 (AFP)-society experts from French-Italian Avions de Transport Regional (ATR) will participate in Cuba in a  research on the causes of the crash of the ATR 72-212 that crashed Thursday in the center of the island, killing 68 dead, said Saturday an official source.

"We are confident that French technicians will participate in the research process, according to the international convention , and they are already doing the paperwork for it, "A spokesman from the State Civil Aeronautics Institute of Cuba said, (IACC), without specifying when the experts will arrive to the island.

"Cuba has given permission for the manufacturer's technicians to come and the invitation has been issued through the embassy
of France in Cuba, to participate as guests in the investigations, "said IACC spokesman, who declined to be identified.

He stressed that since Thursday the Institute established a commission to inquire into the causes of the disaster, some of them are "Working on the scene" and one does "research laboratory" in Havana.

The team of Cuban researchers found the black box on Friday and voice of the aircraft, belonging to the Cuban company
Aerocaribbean, which crashed on Thursday with 61 passengers, including 28 foreigners and seven crew on board, in the Guasimal region, province of Sancti Spiritus, 400 km east of Havana.

The Cuban forensic expert, Jorge Gonzalez, said Saturday the official newspaper Granma that Cuba "has full capacity and means to investigate  this air tragedy, "for which they activated, in addition to the team working in Sancti Spiritus, a group of experts in Havana.

But the Cuban air force spokesman said that Gonzalez was referring only to the process of identification of 68 bodies burned in the accident, held at the Institute of Legal Medicine of Havana, and not the technical part of the research, provided by the IACC.

A spokesman for ATR, based in the French city of Toulouse, said Friday that the company and the BEA (Bureau of Research and Analysis on the Safety of Civil Aviation) were "in contact" with Aerocaribbean and "had a team ready to travel to Cuba and assist in the investigation if necessary. "

Source: www.univision.com/contentroot/wirefeeds/noticias/8319524.shtml