Air France not guilty of manslaughter of 228 on jet which crashed into Atlantic

17 April 2023 , 11:53

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Rescue teams work to retrieve debris from the wreckage of Air France flight 447 off the coast of Brazil

Airbus and Air France have been acquitted of manslaughter charges over the 2009 crash of Rio-Paris Flight 447.

A French court ruled on Monday that Airbus and Air France are not guilty of manslaughter over the crash, which was flying from Rio to Paris, which killed 228 people and led to lasting changes in aircraft safety measures.

Sobs broke out among victims' families in the courtroom as the judges read out the decision.

Acquittal was expected - a devastating defeat for victims' families who fought for 13 years to see the case reach court.

The two-month trial left families wracked with anger and disappointment.

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Unusually, even state prosecutors had argued for acquittal, saying that the proceedings did not produce enough proof of criminal wrongdoing by the companies.

Mark Dubois was the veteran pilot of the doomed Air France flight (Internet grab)

Prosecutors laid the responsibility primarily with the pilots, who died in the crash.

Airbus lawyers also blamed pilot error, and Air France said the full reasons for the crash will never be known.

Airbus and Air France had faced potential fines of up to 225,000 euros (£199,000) each if convicted. While that is just a fraction of their annual revenues, a conviction for the aviation heavyweights would have reverberated through the industry.

Pierre-Cedric Bonin, another pilot on board, with his wife Isabelle (Isabelle Bonin)

No-one risks prison, as only the companies are on trial.

Air France has already compensated the families of those killed, who came from 33 countries. Families from around the world are among the plaintiffs, including many in Brazil.

The A330-200 plane disappeared from the radar in a storm over the Atlantic on June 1 2009, with 216 passengers and 12 crew members on board.

A piece of debris is hauled from the Atlantic Ocean (BRAZILIAN NAVY/AFP via Getty Ima)

It took two years to find the aircraft and its black box recorders on the ocean floor, at depths of more than 13,000ft (around 4,000m).

The official investigation found that multiple factors contributed to the crash, including pilot error and the icing over of external sensors called pitot tubes.

An Associated Press investigation at the time found that Airbus had known since at least 2002 about problems with the type of pitot tubes used on the jet that crashed, but failed to replace them until after the crash.

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Arthur Coakley, from Whitby in North Yorkshire, was one of the flight's tragic victims (PA)

Air France is accused of not having implemented training in the event of icing of the pitot probes despite the risks.

Airbus is accused of not doing enough to urgently inform airlines and their crews about faults with the pitots or to ensure training to mitigate the risk.

The crash had lasting impacts on the industry, leading to changes in regulations for airspeed sensors and in how pilots are trained.

British victim Alexander Bjoroy, 11 (PA)

The trial was fraught with emotion. Distraught families shouted down the chief executives of Airbus and Air France as the proceedings opened in October, crying out "Shame!" as they entered the witness box.

Dozens of people who lost loved ones stormed out of the court as the trial concluded with the prosecutors' surprising call for acquittal.

Ryan Fahey