GENE RANDALL, CNN ANCHOR: Here in Washington, the National Transportation Safety Board has begun examining the second so-called black box from Alaska Airlines Flight 261, which crashed on Monday off the coast of California. Investigators at the scene, meanwhile, are closing in on some key evidence. They've located the tail section. Joining us with more, CNN's Greg LaMotte near the crash site in Port Hueneme, California -- Greg.</s>GREG LAMOTTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Gene, the U.S. Navy is working with blistering speed in providing investigators with exactly the kind of evidence they'll need to determine why Alaska Airlines Flight 261 crashed. The flight data recorder has been recovered. That will tell investigators what was going on with the plane mechanically prior to its fatal plunge. The cockpit voice recorder has been recovered and analyzed in Washington. And yesterday, video from the ocean floor some 650 feet deep showed a large section of the tail, complete with the Alaska Airlines logo and the horizontal stabilizer. Getting those items out of the water will take some time however. The National Transportation Safety Board says it plans to make a map of the debris field before there will be any effort at wreckage retrieval. Today, NTSB Chairman Jim Hall plans to meet with families of the victims. Yesterday, those families were taken to a private beach area not far from the crash site to give them a chance to mourn, grieve and pray. A memorial service involving those families and many of the private boaters who early on helped retrieve wreckage and search for survivors will be held on Saturday. Greg LaMotte, CNN, live, Port Hueneme, California.
Alaska Airlines Flight 261: NTSB Examines Flight Data Recorder as Navy Rushes to Retrieve Tail Section