Bodies of pilot, attendant of crashed Air France plane identified

PARIS, June 25 (Xinhua) -- The bodies of the captain and a flight attendant of an Air France airliner crashed into the Atlantic on June 1 have been identified, Air France said Thursday.

A handout picture from the Brazilian Navy released on June 22,  2009 shows Brazilian Navy warships searching for debris from Air  France Airbus A330 out of the Atlantic Ocean. Brazilian Navy  announced on Monday that they found more debris of the crashed  Air France Airbus A330.(Xinhua Photo)

The two crew members of Flight 447, which were among 50 bodies recovered from the ocean by the rescue teams, "have been identified to date: the captain and a steward," Air France said in a statement.

But the airline didn't release their names.

An Air France Airbus A330 plane plunged into the Atlantic some 1,200 km off the Brazilian coastline on a flight from Rio de Janeiro to Paris on June 1. All 228 people of 32 nationalities on board died.

The reason of the crash still remains unknown. According to the French air accident authority, investigators have not yet found the flight recorders of the airliner.