There has been a remembrance service for the victims of the Air France disaster, held in the cathedral of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil.

As friends and relatives mourned those lost on the Rio to Paris flight, more theories were being put forward on how a modern jet could suffer such catastrophic failure on what was, in effect, a routine flight. One Brazilian newspaper claimed to have details of the distress messages sent by the Airbus A330, with one showing the aircraft was in free-fall indicating the loss of cabin pressure. A Spanish newspaper quoted an airline pilot who said he saw an intense flash of white light in the distance at around the same time that contact with the Air France plane was lost. So far, these theories remain unconfirmed speculation. But, although mid-air disintegration is looking more likely, the Brazilian defence minister said the discovery of aviation fuel on the sea surface seems to point to the fact that there was no fire nor explosion. An international fleet has begun recovering what debris has already been spotted.More about: Brazil, France, Plane crash

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