Air France aircraft disappears over ocean

France said it is unlikely that anyone on board a plane carrying 228 people which vanished en route from Brazil has survived.



Airline officials said the plane may have been damaged by lightning and

vanished after flying into turbulence.



They said it was well over the ocean when it was lost, making the task of Brazilian and French search planes more difficult.



France\'s president Nicolas Sarkozy said the chances of finding survivors are very slim.



Earlier, Air France chief executive Pierre-Henri Gourgeon told reporters that there was no doubt that the airline was faced with an air disaster.



The flight had 216 passengers and 12 crew on board, including three pilots.



The passengers included one infant, seven children, 82 women and 126 men.