A somewhat interesting article has appeared in
Le Figaro in which it is claimed that the BEA will not be contributing to the Phase 4 search due to get underway from Recife in February 2011. The €11,000,000 cost is to be shared equally by Airbus and Air France, and the Remus AUVs will be operated from a smaller vessel than in the Phase 3 search. The article indicates that the
"Alucia" (formerly Ifremer's "Nadir") will be the support vessel, and that the search will begin in the north of the 40NM radius probability circle and extend south to the Last Known Position.
The vessel will only be equipped for the search and mapping phase and planning for the recovery phase will be made once the wreckage has been located. It's anticipated that there will be 3 rotations of the vessel, each of one month from its base at Recife, to cater for mandatory crew changes, providoring and bunkers.
An interesting (though unverifiable) comment was made regarding discussions the BEA has purportedly had with the Russian Army, in which the Russians stated that statistically most crashes happen within 5-10NM of the aircraft's last reported position, and those crashes occurred "at the end of a vertical drop and a spiral path".