Two pieces of new evidence have suggested that the stricken Air France jet broke up over a number of minutes, rather than in one catastrophic incident. Firstly, bodies from Flight 447 had been picked up from locations more than 50 miles apart, the Brazilian Air Force revealed.
And secondly, a re-analysis of the plane's last automatic transmissions indicated many parts had malfunctioned before it plunged into the Atlantic.
Manufacturer Airbus told customers the investigation re-enforced the belief that the parts measuring air speed were the first to fail.
The plane's three speed sensors, or Pitot tubes, are likely to have malfunctioned four hours into the flight from Rio de Janeiro to Paris, according to pilot union officials who examined the data.
Sky News has also learned that automated messages showed a gradual change in the cabin pressure shortly before the plane crashed.
This could suggest that the plane was either climbing or descending, and could again dismiss the idea of an explosion or a catastrophic break up.
Meanwhile, two terror suspects who died alongside 226 other passengers on the stricken jet have been ruled out as a cause of the disaster.
The two men only "shared the same name" as known Islamic radicals, posthumous security checks found.
Although their bodies have yet to be recovered, France's Interior Ministry confirmed that a "deep and wide-ranging investigation has allowed us to clear them".
The announcement came as the urgent hunt for the flight's black boxes was boosted by the introduction of a French nuclear submarine.
Emeraude will trawl 13 square miles a day, using sonar to attempt to pick up the boxes' acoustic beacons before they begin fading in three weeks' time.
Brazilian searchers in charge of recovering floating bodies and debris say the surface search area has now widened into Senegalese waters.
Ocean currents have pushed the remnants far and wide since the jet went down on June 1 on route to Charles de Gaulle International airport.
The black boxes provide the best hope of unravelling the cause of the worst aviation accident since 2001.
Italian police arrested six people Thursday in raids on a group of suspected radical leftists who were allegedly planning a terror attack, authorities said.
Italian police have thwarted a suspected plot to attack the G8 summit which world leaders including Barack Obama and Gordon Brown are due to attend.
Six people were arrested and accused of criminal association for the purposes of terrorism and arms possession, anti-terrorist police chief Lamberto Giannini said.
Officers reportedly seized weapons including a bomb during the raids in Rome, Milan and Genoa.
The suspects had maps of the summit's closed-circuit surveillance system and "were trying to figure out how to bypass the security systems," Mr Giannini said.
The investigation into the alleged plot started two years ago when the summit was scheduled to be held on the Sardinian island of La Maddalena.
Italy's Prime Minister changed the venue to L'Aquila following the earthquake which claimed 295 lives there in April.
Silvio Berlusconi said he made the decision to "show solidarity" with the victims during the G8 meeting on July 8-10.
He argued that millions of euros could be saved by moving the summit to a more modest location and said anti-globalisation campaigners would be less likely to stage protests in a disaster zone.
The suspected plotters shifted their attention to target the new venue, according to Italian newspapers Corriere della Sera and La Stampa.
They were trying to "reconstitute a formation similar to the Red Brigades", a terrorist group who carried out attacks in Italy in the 1970s and 1980s, Mr Giannini said.
Among those arrested were Luigi Fallico, a former member of the Red Brigades, and Gianfranco Zoia, who was arrested in the 1990s for membership of an armed gang.
The Interior Ministry said the group was preparing an attack in La Maddalena, an island off Sardinia that had originally been selected to host the Group of Eight summit next month.
The summit has been moved to L’Aquila in central Italy to draw attention to the region and boost its economy after it was struck by a devastating earthquake in April.
Police officials said the plans for the terror attack had been in their infancy, with the suspects studying how they could get around security in La Maddalena.
Five people were taken to jail and one was placed under house arrest in the anti-terror operation that included raids in Rome, Milan and Genoa.
One of the suspects had been close to the Red Brigades, the leftist group that plagued Italy with attacks in the 1970s and 1980s, and was allegedly working to recreate the militant organization.
“The operation is of exceptional importance because it stopped the reorganization of armed violence in Italy,” Interior Minister Roberto Maroni said.
TV host David Letterman has been criticised for making "sexually perverted" comments and "rape jokes" about Sarah Palin's teenage daughter.
David Letterman deftly played it both ways on Wednesday's "Late Show" as he apologized for wisecracks aimed earlier in the week at Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and one of her teenage daughters -- even as he milked the situation for more laughs.
Blur have made their first public appearance since reforming as they collected a top music prize at the Mojo Awards, known as the Honours List.
Graham Coxon, Damon Albarn, Alex James and Dave Rowntree were back together to pick up the Inspiration award.
Blur are due to play sell-out gigs in Hyde Park in next month, nine years after their last concert as a four-piece band.
Guitarist Coxon left the band seven years ago.
The group helped define and popularise the Britpop sound in the 1990s, and wrote some of the decade's best-loved songs.
They included Parklife, Country House, The Universal, and Song 2.
Phil Alexander, Mojo magazine's editor in chief, said: "Blur are the greatest band of their generation.
"They're one of the few bands that have inspired their heroes, as well as their peers and those that have come after them."
Here is the full list of winners from Mojo magazine Honours List:
:: Breakthrough Act White Lies
:: Song Of the Year Elbow - One Day Like This
:: Best Live Act Fleet Foxes
:: Best Album Paul Weller - 22 Dreams
:: Compilation Of The Year Take Me To The River: A Southern Soul Story
:: Vision Award Joy Division
:: Catalogue Award Miles Davis - Kind Of Blue 50th Anniversary Edition
:: Classic Album Award The Zombies - Odessey And Oracle
:: Maverick Award Manic Street Preachers
:: Hero Award The Pretty Things
:: Outstanding Contribution To Music Joe Brown
:: Roots Awards Topic Records
:: Classic Songwriter Award Johnny Marr
:: MOJO Medal Chris Blackwell / Island Records
:: Inspiration Award Blur
:: Icon Award Phil Lynott
:: Les Paul Award Billy Gibbons - ZZ Top
:: Hall Of Fame Mott The Hoople
:: Lifetime Achievement Award Yoko Ono
The magazine's sixth annual awards ceremony saw US indie act Fleet Foxes beat competition from Paul Weller, Leonard Cohen, Radiohead and Seasick Steve to take the Best Live Act award.
Weller could take comfort from winning the Best Album prize for his latest work 22 Dreams, particularly as the award means he has now won more Mojos - three - than anyone else.
John Lennon's widow Yoko Ono was given a Lifetime Achievement award for her challenging and innovative approach to music.
Alexander said: "She is a huge influence on modern music and this award recognises her inspirational qualities and ongoing questing. Yoko Ono is unique and we are thrilled to commemorate her lifetime on the frontline."
Mojo readers voted Elbow's One Day Like This as Song of the Year, adding to the Manchester-based band's already impressive haul of awards.
In the last 12 months, their album The Seldom Seen Kid has helped them win two Ivor Novello awards, the Brit award for best British group and the Mercury Prize.
Another band reuniting this year are 70s rockers Mott the Hoople, who were honoured by Mojo with a Hall of Fame award. The ceremony took place at The Brewery in London.
A lorry driver who had sex with a 15-year-old girl he met in an internet chatroom before taking her to France has been jailed for five years.
Robert Williams, 49, of Glebe Road, Whitburn, Scotland, was sentenced at Grimsby Crown Court after earlier pleading guilty to child abduction and sexual activity with a child.
Babyshambles frontman Pete Doherty has been charged with drink-driving and possession of a Class A drug.
Gloucestershire Police said he was also charged with dangerous driving and driving without a licence or insurance.
He was taken into custody after police noticed him driving "erratically" around Gloucester.
The arrest took place about 30 minutes after the musician finished playing a solo performance at the city's Guildhall.
Earlier, a police spokesman said: "At approximately 12.30am officers on patrol in Eastgate Street saw a car being driven erratically, it continued down Barton Street and was stopped in Derby Road.
Pete Doherty has been charged with being drunk at the wheel while in possession of Class A drugs following a gig on Wednesday.
The 30-year-old Babyshambles and ex-Libertines singer was stopped after midnight in Gloucester when officers spotted a car "being driven erratically".
The arrest came half an hour after the singer had reportedly charmed an audience of 300 with an acoustic set at the city's Guildhall.
Doherty, who is a former boyfriend of model Kate Moss, has been remanded in custody and will appear before magistrates in Stroud later.
He is charged with drink-driving, dangerous driving, possession of a Class A drug and driving without a valid licence or insurance.
A 30-year-old London woman, who was arrested with him on suspicion of drug possession, has been released without charge.
The pair were arrested in a car at 12.30am in Derby Road, off Barton Street, after he finished a well-received show.
His latest solo album, Grace/Wastelands, was attributed to Peter Doherty, rather than Pete, which critics saw as a sign of growing maturity.
Earlier, a Gloucestershire Police spokesman confirmed that a 30-year-old man from Marlborough, Wiltshire, was being held.
A spokesman said: "At approximately 12.30am on June 11, officers on patrol in Eastgate Street, Gloucester, saw a car being driven erratically.
"The vehicle drove off into Barton Street and stopped in Derby Road, where a man and woman found in the vehicle were arrested."
Singer Pete Doherty has been arrested on suspicion of drink-driving and drug possession - half an hour after playing a gig.
The 30-year-old Babyshambles and ex-Libertines singer was stopped on Wednesday night in Gloucester after officers spotted a car "being driven erratically".
He is also suspected of failing to stop for officers, while a woman, also aged 30, who was with him was also arrested for drug possession.
Doherty, a former boyfriend of model Kate Moss, was arrested in Derby Road, off Barton Street, less than half an hour after he finished a show at the city's Guildhall.
The incident came after the singer had reportedly charmed an audience of 300 with an intimate acoustic set.
His latest solo album Grace/Wastelands was attributed to Peter Doherty, rather than Pete, which critics saw as a sign of growing maturity.
A Gloucestershire Police spokesman confirmed that a 30-year-old man from Marlborough, Wiltshire, was being held.
A spokesman said: "At approximately 12.30am on June 11 officers on patrol in Eastgate Street, Gloucester, saw a car being driven erratically. The vehicle drove off into Barton Street and stopped in Derby Road, where a man and woman found in the vehicle were arrested.
"The man, who is 30 and from the Marlborough area of Wiltshire, was arrested on suspicion of drink-driving, possession of drugs and failing to stop for police.
"The woman, who is also 30 but from London, was arrested on suspicion of possession of drugs. Both were taken into custody at Gloucester police station, where they remain for questioning.
Ben and his friends had been to a bar in Islington, north London, on June 29 last year to celebrate the end of their GCSE exams when a row broke out and Ben was chased down the street and then stabbed to death.
Although the confrontation had nothing to do with him, Ben was stabbed 11 times in five seconds by the three youths in revenge for the "disrespect" shown to Braithwaite earlier.
After the verdicts, it emerged Kika had been on the run from police for 10 days following a robbery in which a man was knifed on June 19.
Three other youths were arrested but despite extensive searches and inquiries, Kika was not found until he was arrested for Ben's murder at a flat in Chadwell Heath, east London, on June 30.
The 21-year-old robbery victim, who appeared to have been involved in a row about drugs, refused to press charges.
Alleyne was being supervised by the local youth offending team as part of an 18-month detention and training order for drug dealing.
He had been released three months earlier after serving half the sentence in a detention centre.
Officers swooped on him when they saw a car being driven “erratically” through the town. Doherty was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving, possession of drugs, and failing to stop.
“At approximately 12.30 a.m. officers on patrol in Eastgate Street saw a car being driven erratically. It continued down Barton Street and was stopped in Derby Road…A 30-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of drink driving, possession of drugs and failure to stop for police. He remains in custody at this time,” said a spokesperson for Gloucestershire Police.
Later on Thursday, the star’s home in Wiltshire, England was raided by authorities. A spokesperson for Wiltshire Police however, refused to give details on what officers were searching for, or if anything was found.
“We did ask Wiltshire Police to search an address in the Marlborough area in connection with a drugs arrest which took place in Gloucestershire,” said a Wiltshire police.
Two pieces of new evidence have suggested that the stricken Air France jet broke up over a number of minutes, rather than in one catastrophic incident. Firstly, bodies from Flight 447 had been picked up from locations more than 50 miles apart, the Brazilian Air Force revealed.
