Investigators relied on debris, bags and clothes as well as chemical analysis to find the subtle imprints of an explosion, according to the report and people involved in the two probes.
“A first indication comes from distribution of the wreckage and then you look for potential reasons, and one would have to be a device on the aircraft,” a former investigator said.
“You are looking for traces of high-energy explosion, such as burns or scorching and penetration of material into bodies or the aircraft,” he said.
“Close to the device itself you might get traces of gas washing over the surface.”
SCATTERED EVIDENCE
A UK report on the Lockerbie disaster said the bomb sent a double shockwave and supersonic shrapnel and gases through the Boeing 747, contributing to the plane’s disintegration.
One of the earliest clues in that probe was evidence of fine “cratering and pitting” in the aircraft, which speeded up the criminal investigation, a person involved in the probe said.
Investigators in Egypt and Russia, where most bodies are now located, will be looking for lacerated clothing, deformed baggage and burn marks in places otherwise free of fire damage, indicating fire before the A321 plunged into the ground.
Russia has however started to bury some of the victims. Forensic experts say detailed examination of bodies would be vital in detecting evidence of any attack.
In harsh conditions such as the Sinai peninsula where the Airbus A321 broke up and fell, evidence can be fragile and end up scattered well beyond the main crash site.
In the UTA disaster, a team including 60 soldiers faced a 50-mile trail of tiny fragments, 10 times the size of the main wreckage field, according to an official French report.
They also had to cope with desert winds and move quickly to make sure vital evidence was found. Their breakthrough came when soldiers combing through 60 square km of Sahara found parts containing traces of explosion.
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