Story highlights Flight data recorder's memory unit is recovered, Egyptian government says

Like cockpit voice recorder recovered Thursday, the data recorder was damaged

(CNN) Searchers have recovered the flight data recorder from EgyptAir Flight 804, Egypt's Civil Aviation Accident Investigation Committee said Friday, potentially a key step in helping unravel the mystery of what caused the plane to plunge into the Mediterranean Sea nearly a month ago.

The discovery of the recorder follows the discovery of wreckage from the flight and the recovery of the cockpit voice recorder this week, according to Egyptian officials.

Like the cockpit voice recorder, the flight data recorder was damaged, but searchers were able to recover the crucial memory unit from the device, the committee said.

The flight data recorder gathers 25 hours of technical data from the airplane's sensors, recording several thousand distinct pieces of information, including air speed, altitude, engine performance and wing positions.

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