French Appeals Court Convicts Airbus and Air France of Manslaughter

A French appeals court ruled on Thursday that Airbus and Air France were solely and entirely responsible for the 2009 crash of Flight AF447, which killed 228 people. The Paris Court of Appeal ordered each company to pay 225,000 euros for each passenger, the maximum fine possible for corporate manslaughter.

The decision came after an eight-week trial and overturned a 2023 acquittal of both companies.

AF447 disappeared from radar on June 1, 2009, while flying from Rio de Janeiro to Paris. Investigators later determined that the pilots had pushed the jet into a climb after sensors measuring flight speed became blocked with ice during a mid-Atlantic storm.

The plane stalled and crashed into the ocean. Lawyers for the victims' families argued that the companies knew about problems with the pitot tubes and had not trained pilots to handle the malfunction.

Airbus stated it plans to appeal the ruling to France's highest court. The company said the latest finding contradicted submissions from prosecutors and the earlier acquittal. Prosecutors had previously warned that an appeal was likely and criticized the companies' conduct during the legal process.

Air France's lawyer stated in October that the company believed high-altitude training was unnecessary. The penalties are largely symbolic but represent the conclusion of a legal process that began after the crash.