Developing: Air France Airliner Disappeared Over Atlantic Ocean Between Rio and Paris

Say a prayer. The plane apparently lost contact with air traffic controllers about 190 miles off the coast of Brazil. The Airbus A330 with 216 passengers and 12 crew may have been struck by lightning after encountering heavy turbulence:

Four hours after the flight took off at 7 p.m. local time on Sunday, the plane encountered a storm with “very heavy turbulence,” an Air France spokeswoman, Brigitte Barrand, said. The plane disappeared from radar screens four hours and 10 minutes later, 10 minutes after the turbulence was reported.

The plane automatically sent a message informing air traffic control of electrical-system malfunction, Air France officials said in a press conference in Paris. They said there was no further communication.

All jets are built to withstand severe turbulence, especially at upper flying levels, and Ms. Barrand said that the pilot was very experienced, having clocked 11,000 flying hours, including 1,100 hours on Airbus 330 jets. Officials said the plane might have been struck by lightning.

A Brazilian Air Force spokesman said the plane disappeared over the Atlantic near the Brazilian island of Fernando de Noronha, a 7-square-mile island about 186 miles northeast of the coastal Brazilian city of Natal. Search efforts in the area were under way, the spokesman said, according to The Associated Press.

The message about the electrical problem was automatically generated, and there was no further contact after the message was received. The Brazilian air force was conducting a rescue operation and scrambled planes from airfields closest to the last known location to try and locate the plane's wreckage.