Air France aircraft broke apart when it hit water

French investigators probing why an Air France plane crashed in the Atlantic last month, say they believe the aircraft broke up on contact with water, and not in the air.



They also found that the plane\'s speed sensors had been a factor, but not the cause of the crash.



All 228 people on the plane were killed when it fell into the ocean en route from Rio de Janeiro to Paris on June one.



Teams looking for the plane\'s flight data recorders will continue operations for another 10 days.



Alain Bouillard, of France\'s accident investigation agency, said it’s difficult to determine the cause of the crash in the absence of the flight recorders.



Bouillard said an examination of the recovered wreckage led investigators to believe the plane probably hit the water in the direction of flight and with a strong vertical acceleration.