A Paris appeals court has convicted Air France and Airbus of corporate manslaughter for the 2009 Rio-Paris plane crash that killed 228 people. The verdict, delivered on Thursday, overturns a lower court's acquittal from 2023 and marks a significant milestone in a 17-year legal battle.
The court imposed the maximum fine of €225,000 (£194,500) on each company, as requested by prosecutors during an eight-week trial. However, the penalty has been criticised as token, equating to mere minutes of revenue for either firm. Family groups welcomed the conviction as recognition of their loss.
Both companies have denied charges and are expected to appeal. French lawyers predict further appeals to the highest court, prolonging the ordeal for relatives of the victims, who included people of 33 nationalities, primarily French, Brazilian, and German.
Flight AF447 vanished on 1 June 2009 after encountering problems with iced-up sensors. A 2012 investigation found the crew mishandled the situation, causing a stall. Prosecutors instead focused on alleged failures in training and incident follow-up at Airbus and Air France, arguing negligence led to the crash.
Under French law, the appeal involved a complete retrial. Any further appeals will shift focus from the crash itself to legal arguments.
