Missing Air France Flight

From the Associated Press:

SAO PAULO – A missing Air France jet carrying 228 people from Rio de Janeiro to Paris ran into lightning and strong thunderstorms over the Atlantic Ocean, officials said Monday. Brazil began a search mission off its northeastern coast.

Chief Air France spokesman Francois Brousse said "it is possible" that the plane was hit by lightning.

Air France Flight 447, an Airbus A330, left Rio on Sunday at 7 p.m. local time (2200 GMT, 6 p.m. EDT) with 216 passengers and 12 crew members on board, company spokeswoman Brigitte Barrand.

About four hours later, the plane sent an automatic signal indicating electrical problems while going through strong turbulence, Air France said.

The plane "crossed through a thunderous zone with strong turbulence" at 0200 GMT Monday (10 p.m. EDT Sunday). An automatic message was received fourteen minutes later "signaling electrical circuit malfunction."

Brazil's Air Force said the last contact it had with the Air France jet was at 0136 GMT (9:30 p.m. EDT Sunday), but did not say where the plane was at that time.

Brazil's air force was searching near the archipelago of Fernando de Noronha, about 300 kilometers (180 miles) northeast of the coastal city of Natal, a spokesman said, speaking on condition of anonymity in keeping with department policy.

The region is about 1,500 miles northeast of Rio.

The head of investigation and accident prevention for Brazil's Civil Aeronautics Agency, Douglas Ferreira Machado, told Brazil's Globo TV that he believes the plane must have left Brazilian waters and could have been near the coast of Africa by the time contact was lost, based on the speed it was traveling.

"It's going to take a long time to carry out this search," he said. "It could be a long, sad story. The black box will be at the bottom of the sea."

Air France-KLM CEO Pierre-Henri Gourgeon, at a news conference at Charles de Gaulle Airport north of Paris, said the pilot had 11,000 hours of flying experience, including 1,700 hours flying this aircraft. No name was released.

Aviation experts said the risk the plane was brought down by lightning was slim.

"Lightning issues have been considered since the beginning of aviation. They were far more prevalent when aircraft operated at low altitudes. They are less common now since it's easier to avoid thunderstorms," said Bill Voss, president and CEO of Flight Safety Foundation, Alexandria, Va.

He said planes have specific measures built in to help dissipate electricity along the aircraft's skin.

"I cannot recall in recent history any examples of aircraft being brought down by lightning," he told The Associated Press.

Experts said it was clear the plane was not in the air any longer, due to the amount of fuel it would have been carrying.

"The conclusion to be drawn is that something catastrophic happened on board that has caused this airplane to ditch in a controlled or an uncontrolled fashion," Jane's Aviation analyst Chris Yates told The Associated Press.

"I would suggest that potentially it went down very quickly and so quickly that the pilot on board didn't have a chance to make that emergency call," Yates said, adding that the possibilities ranged from mechanical failure to terrorism.

Families who arrived to meet passengers on board were cordoned off, away from reporters, at a special Air France information center at the Charles de Gaulle airport. That center said 60 French citizens were on the plane. Italy said at least three passengers were Italian.

"Air France shares the emotion and worry of the families concerned," Barrand said.

The flight was supposed to arrive in Paris at 0915 GMT (5:15 a.m. EDT), according to the airport.

Airbus said it was cooperating with transport authorities and Air France, but would not further comment until more details emerged.

"Our thoughts are with the passengers and with the families of the passengers," said Airbus spokeswoman Maggie Bergsma.

The Airbus A330-200 is a twin-engine, long-haul, medium-capacity passenger jet that is 58.8 meters (190 feet) long. It is a shortened version of the standard A330, and can hold up to 253 passengers. It first went into service in 1998 and there are 341 in use worldwide today. It can fly up to 7,760 miles (12,500 kilometers).

French President Nicolas Sarkozy expressed his "extreme worry" and planned to visit the Charles de Gaulle airport later Monday.

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Let us pray that this turns out positively for the 228 souls on board, and for the families and loved ones waiting for them back home.

The Big "H"

I'm a recent connoisseur of the venerable Hermes brand. If you love Hermes silks and leathers and one day plan to own the grand-mere of purses (Mlle Birkin or Mlle Kelly), I highly recommend that you visit my two new guilty internet pleasures:

The Purse Blog Hermes Forum and fellow blogger Mai Tai. The ladies on the forum have THE scoop about all things Hermes. And they are generous with there photos. Through the forum, I came across the lovely MaiTai's blog. She is the embodiment of what women envision when they hear the term "french chic." If there was anyone who ever actually lives it, it's Mai Tai.

Chic Style

I'm a HUGE fan of Victoria Beckham. I think her style is over the top and fabulous. I love that she absolutely takes her style so seriously. Sure, she has some misses but they are few and far between. Fur was on my radar this winter as I spent a lot of time on the East Coast. If you didn't know, East Coast ladies don't play when it comes to their fur! It's practical and stylish. I found faux mink jacket for formal events for under $50, but I'm probably going to purchase a full length fur by next winter. I'm totally coveting this Antonio Berardi fur that Victoria is wearing.

Chanel et Tatou

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obXrWJaV8Hg

I am SO freaking excited for this movie.

Bad Blogger. . .Good News!

Dang, it's been a while since I've updated this thing! Apologies to the (maybe) 2 readers of this blog :)

While I've been a bad blogger, there is some good news: I'm going to Paris in the spring! Per usual, I'm traveling alone, so if anyone will be in the city or is an expat in the city, I'd love some company! As much as I love to travel, I admit that traveling alone kinda. . .sucks at time. I mean, who's gonna snap my fabulous pics? (I kid, I kid.) This time, I'm coming to the city of lights with a plan: I belong to so many international networking sites and have amazingly kept in touch with people I met in Europe almost two years ago. So in the words of Rhett Butler, "I shan't be lonely."

There are some AMAZING spring fares to Europe now, so I encourage anyone who wants to go but is alone or is afraid of making to 8 hour trip to charge it and think about it later! You WILL get on that flight!

Anyway, bisoux. I'm going to download my french cd's onto my mp3 player and kick my basic franglais into high gear. Vive la France!

Getting Organized

My life is not totally out of control, but I feel like I need to manage my time better. I've decided to invest in a grown up planner, the planner pad. I had a wonderful planner at my all girls high school and remembered desperately wanting the same planner when I was in college.

I am truly a mess with missing appointments, paying bills late, etc. It's just not acceptable at my age. I also waste a lot of time on the net. I always forget to buy something at the store even though it was written down on a sticky note that got lost. . .

Especially since I'm a member of the JL this year, I have a lot of social and volunteer commitments coming up. I need to make sure my word is my word when I agree to sign up for things. I HATE canceling on someone at the last minute.

The planner pad has a unique three-tiered system for getting organized. First, you list all the things you need to take care of for that week. Then you funnel those tasks into days of the week. Finally, you schedule individual appointments day by day. You can check off as you go and look ahead to things you need to accomplish as the week goes on.

I think I'm a touch to ADD to keep having nebulous thoughts in my head for what I want to accomplish for the week. It would be good to see it in black and white (and color). Oh, and I don't think an electronic system would work for me. The process of writing down my thoughts would be better.

More French Chic: Olivia Chantecaille

I love her style and always look forward to seeing what she's wearing.
Credit: Park venue Peerage