Originally Posted by JTrain
Would the airplane have had a CVR or FDR?
I think that depends entirely on whether the legislation governing the operation of the aircraft mandated either one.
The problem is, what legislation governed the flight, and what regulatory authority provided the oversight? The American FAA, because Air Serv (an American Part 91 operator) sold the tickets and hustled the charters? The South African CAA, in light of fact that the beneficial owner of the aircraft and the company that supplied the crew (Cemair) is South African? The policies and practices of the AOC holder (presumably Star Air Cargo, also of ZA)? The legislation of the DRC, the country where the aircraft was based and and also the point of origin and destination of the flight?
Or... did this entire rather convoluted arrangement manage to fall between the cracks and, as a result, was never supervised by any regulatory authority?