Germanwings crash: what are the parallels with EgyptAir 990?

Experts see similarities between Tuesday's tragedy and the mysterious 1999 crash of EgyptAir flight 990

A relative of a victim from EgyptAir Flight 990
(Image credit: AFP/Getty Images)

In 1999, EgyptAir flight 990 ditched into the sea 30 minutes after it took off from New York, killing all 217 people on board. A subsequent investigation by the American National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) concluded that the cause of the crash had been a deliberate act by the relief first officer, but an Egyptian inquest into the incident found that the crash had been caused by mechanical failure.

On Thursday, French investigators confirmed that the Germanwings plane which crashed into the French Alps on Tuesday, killing all 150 people on board, was brought down intentionally by the co-pilot. So are there parallels to be drawn between the EgyptAir flight and the Germanwings crash?

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