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SALVAGE POSSIBILITIES EXAMINED
FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT
ROME Jan. 12
The search by aircraft of the waters between the
islands of Elba
and Monte Cristo, where the Comet airliner crashed on Sunday, was
abandoned this morning,
but an Italian corvette is still in the vicinity continuing the search
for pieces of
wreckage that may still be afloat.
Unfortunately the Asdic under-water detection apparatus of this
vessel is not
working and it has, therefore, not been possible yet to identify the
exact situation of
the main section of the aircraft, in which a number of bodies are
believed to be entombed
under water. This section, comprising the cabin and possibly
other portions of the
aircraft, is regarded as the main piece of evidence on which
investigation of the causes
of the disaster can be based, and its recovery will be the main purpose
of the salvage and
diving operations that are likely to be attempted, it members of
the commission of
inquiry in Elba report that such an attempt is at all practicable.
The Naval Attache of the British Embassy in Rome is in touch with
British naval
authorities about any help that may be required, or possible, to
supplement that already
available from Italy. The remaining section of the aircraft lies
in about 40 fathoms
of water, according to information available here, and it is considered
almost certain
that salvage will be attempted if it is at all possible.
From THE TIMES
(London) 13th
January 1954