AF 447 Search to resume (part2)

[Chris Scott]

Galleys secured?

Quote from bearfoil, responding to Mr Optimistic‘s post[FONT=Verdana][SIZE=2]:
I think Chris is referring to what I call "Flipper doors", the panels that keep the boxes inside the cabinet when closed, and open and then stow "inside" the partition on either side of the opening. This is to hide the doors out of the cabin space when open.

To remove any possible doubt as to what I meant by “the latches”, I was referring to the bright-red, rotating latches (each about the size and shape of a finger) that stop the aluminium catering boxes (“canisters”) sliding out of their stowages. The floating stowage unit was obviously being prepared for retrieval by a diver, so the red latches might have been interfered with prior to the photography. If so, I hope their original positions had been recorded...

By the way, I think the canisters shown in the pictures are in the bottom of the stowage unit, so the part that the diver is standing in is the top.

However, the canisters were presumably the ones used in that stowage in flight. If they had fallen out in the accident, they would quickly fill with water. Would they have floated? If they had, after some days they would probably have been far away from the stowage unit. I’m wondering if the stowage unit was mounted on the front bulkhead of a galley area, meaning the canisters would need to slide out aft for removal. Nevertheless, that they should have remained in the ejected stowage unit with the latches in the open position would be bizarre, so I fear my original comment may have been a red herring.