Air France should face trial for manslaughter & negligence over Rio de Janeiro crash – prosecutors

Air France could face trial for manslaughter and negligence over the 2009 crash which killed 228 people on a flight from Rio de Janeiro to Paris, if new advice from French prosecutors is followed.

Prosecutors have recommended that Air France face trial, concluding that the company was aware of technical problems with a speed-measuring instrument on its Airbus A330 plane.

The airline did not inform pilots or train them in how to resolve the issues, however, according to an investigation document seen by Agence France-Presse. The prosecutors also recommended dropping the case against Airbus, the manufacturer.

A 2012 report into the crash by French air crash investigator BEA concluded that errors by pilots and failure to react swiftly after speed sensors malfunctioned led to the crash.

Investigating magistrates will decide whether to follow advice from prosecutors and bring a case to court, but Air France will be able to appeal any decision to bring a trial.

Flight AF447 tragically crashed into the Atlantic Ocean during a storm on June 1, 2009 – but the full wreckage was not located until two years later. It was found off the Brazilian coast by remote-controlled submarines at a depth of 13,000ft.

Earlier this year, employees of US manufacturer Boeing made complaints about the company’s 737 MAX planes after the entire fleet was grounded by regulators following two crashes which claimed the lives of 346 people in the space of five months. 

Whistleblowers claimed that pilots had not received sufficient or proper training for the MAX 737 planes.

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