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Caskets holding victims of Air New Zealand Perpignan crash, get ready to be sent back to New Zealand - Source: ONE News -
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The bodies of four New Zealanders killed when an Airbus ploughed into the sea off southern France will arrive in Auckland on Tuesday morning.
Crash investigators are unlocking the secrets of the black box recorders, but say the cockpit itself could yield important clues.
The A320 crashed into the Mediterranean during a test flight over southern France in November last year. The fifth New Zealander, engineer Murray White, is yet to be found.
Family members of the deceased hope this trip will provide closure, but say it will still be some time for the healing process to take over.
They have been in France preparing to take the bodies home and paying their final respects at the crash site.
"The families came to see their loves ones in the chapel and it was a very emotional moment. Some wanted to know what condition the bodies were in. We tried to tell them honestly and as gently as we could," says funeral director, Christine Gonzalez.
A chartered plane is taking the family members home with their loved ones' remains, however French authorities say the investigation is far from over.
The judge in charge of the case says he wants a closer look at the wreckage as he thinks there may be some clues they have overlooked.
He says flight recorder data from the plane has revealed the doomed plane had a power surge that caused it to climb steeply, then it tipped on its side before plunging into the sea.
"My team is sending down divers and an unmanned submarine to retrieve as much of the cockpit as possible because we think there is some additional information there that will explain why the plane crashed," says Jean-Pierre Dreno, the investigating judge.
Air New Zealand's management have pledged to return to southern France and pick up the remains of the fifth missing team member as soon as he is found.
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