AF447
Re-comment by Dave Gittens:
MY personal opinion (which I detect is shared by many here) is that I have never known an aeroplane break up and then carry on for '50 or so' miles. Space Shuttle - yes. A330 I do not believe it is remotely possible.
There could be a couple of reasons for this:
1 - if the a/c broke up in the air with one part in a violent CB updraught and the other perhaps in downdraught, or falling into a different updraught, significant separation could easily occur.
2 - perhaps more likely - debris 'floating' at different depths could be sepatared by currents in the area e.g. the 'surface currents' are only a few hundred metres deep but move several miles per day relative to deeper water.