من موقع السي ان ان CNN.com
Former Airbus pilot John Wiley told CNN that speculation lightning had brought down the plane was likely to prove unfounded since most modern passenger aircraft were capable of withstanding direct strikes.
The last known contact with flight AF 337 -- carrying 126 men, 82 women, seven children and a baby, plus the crew -- was at 1:33 GMT Monday (8:33 p.m. Sunday ET), according to the Brazilian Air Force.
Brazil says it has launched two air force squadrons to hunt near the archipelago of Fernando de Noronha in the Atlantic Ocean, 365 kilometers (226 miles) from its coast, although the plane vanished outside the country's radar coverage.
The Air Force said the jet was last logged flying at an altitude of 10,600 meters (35,000 feet) before contact was lost. When the plane failed to make further contact, Brazilian air controllers contacted their counterparts in Senegal.