Nearly four weeks after the Air France plane crash, Brazil has called off the search for victims and wreckage. Flight 447 came down in the Atlantic on June 1st, killing all 228 people on board. Some bodies and debris have been recovered, but it is now nine days since since the last body was seen in the water, and it is thought highly unlikely anything more will be found.

“Even though we wanted to recover all the 228 people, we now truly believe that we have done all we can, between the navy and the air force,” said Brazilian Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Henry Munhoz. “So, we are ending operations with 51 recovered bodies.” The remains of eleven victims have been identified, including the plane’s captain and a member of the cabin crew. The reason for the crash is not known, and may never be, with most of the wreckage lying at the bottom of the sea. Despite Brazil’s decision top abandon the search, the French navy is continuing to look for the Airbus’s flight recorders. A nuclear submarine is combing the depths, with a smaller submersible ready to take over if the recorders’ homing beacons are found. But so far, there has been nothing.More about: Air France, Brazil, France

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