Continental Airlines Inc. and one of its mechanics were convicted in a French court of manslaughter Monday because debris from one of its planes caused the crash of an Air France Concorde jet that killed 113 people a decade ago.
The Houston-based airline was ordered to pay Air France $1.43 million US for damaging its reputation, in addition to a fine of around $265,000. The victims of the crash were mostly German tourists.
Firefighters spray water on the debris of a crashed Air France Concorde on July 25, 2000. A French court has blamed Continental Airlines and one of its mechanics responsible for the crash that killed 109 people. (Christophe Ena/Associated Press)
The presiding judge confirmed investigators' long-held belief that titanium debris dropped by a Continental DC-10 onto the runway at Charles de Gaulle airport before the supersonic jet took off on July 25, 2000, was to blame. Investigators said the debris gashed the Concorde's tire, propelling bits of rubber into the fuel tanks and sparking a fire.
The plane then slammed into a nearby hotel, killing all 109 people aboard and four others on the ground.
Ronald Schmid, a lawyer who has represented several families of the German victims, said he was "skeptical" about the ruling.
"It bothers me that none of those responsible for Air France were sitting in the docks," he told The Associated Press by phone from Frankfurt.
The airline and mechanic, John Taylor, were also ordered to jointly pay more than $360,000 in damages to different civil parties.
Taylor was also handed a 15-month suspended prison sentence, and a $2,650 fine. All other defendants — including three former French officials and Taylor's now-retired supervisor Stanley Ford — were acquitted.
The court said Taylor should not have used titanium, a harder metal than usual, to build a piece for the DC-10 that is known as a wear strip. He was also accused of improperly installing the piece that fell onto the runway.
Air France Concorde flight 4590 takes off with fire trailing from its engine on the left wing at Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris in this July 25, 2000, file photo. (Toshihiko Sato/Associated Press
Continental's defence lawyer, Olivier Metzner, confirmed the carrier would appeal. He denounced a ruling that he called "patriotic" for sparing the French defendants and convicting only the Americans.
"This is a ruling that protects only the interests of France. This has strayed far from the truth of law and justice," he said. "This has privileged purely national interests."
Continental spokesman Nick Britton, in a statement, echoed that sentiment, and said the airline disagreed with the "absurd finding" against it and Taylor.
"Portraying the metal strip as the cause of the accident and Continental and one of its employees as the sole guilty parties shows the determination of the French authorities to shift attention and blame away from Air France," he said, noting that Air France was state-run at the time.
Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2010/12/06/concorde-crash-ruling.html#ixzz17L5G2SKk
The Houston-based airline was ordered to pay Air France $1.43 million US for damaging its reputation, in addition to a fine of around $265,000. The victims of the crash were mostly German tourists.
Firefighters spray water on the debris of a crashed Air France Concorde on July 25, 2000. A French court has blamed Continental Airlines and one of its mechanics responsible for the crash that killed 109 people. (Christophe Ena/Associated Press)
The presiding judge confirmed investigators' long-held belief that titanium debris dropped by a Continental DC-10 onto the runway at Charles de Gaulle airport before the supersonic jet took off on July 25, 2000, was to blame. Investigators said the debris gashed the Concorde's tire, propelling bits of rubber into the fuel tanks and sparking a fire.
The plane then slammed into a nearby hotel, killing all 109 people aboard and four others on the ground.
Ronald Schmid, a lawyer who has represented several families of the German victims, said he was "skeptical" about the ruling.
"It bothers me that none of those responsible for Air France were sitting in the docks," he told The Associated Press by phone from Frankfurt.
The airline and mechanic, John Taylor, were also ordered to jointly pay more than $360,000 in damages to different civil parties.
Taylor was also handed a 15-month suspended prison sentence, and a $2,650 fine. All other defendants — including three former French officials and Taylor's now-retired supervisor Stanley Ford — were acquitted.
The court said Taylor should not have used titanium, a harder metal than usual, to build a piece for the DC-10 that is known as a wear strip. He was also accused of improperly installing the piece that fell onto the runway.
Air France Concorde flight 4590 takes off with fire trailing from its engine on the left wing at Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris in this July 25, 2000, file photo. (Toshihiko Sato/Associated Press
Continental's defence lawyer, Olivier Metzner, confirmed the carrier would appeal. He denounced a ruling that he called "patriotic" for sparing the French defendants and convicting only the Americans.
"This is a ruling that protects only the interests of France. This has strayed far from the truth of law and justice," he said. "This has privileged purely national interests."
Continental spokesman Nick Britton, in a statement, echoed that sentiment, and said the airline disagreed with the "absurd finding" against it and Taylor.
"Portraying the metal strip as the cause of the accident and Continental and one of its employees as the sole guilty parties shows the determination of the French authorities to shift attention and blame away from Air France," he said, noting that Air France was state-run at the time.
Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2010/12/06/concorde-crash-ruling.html#ixzz17L5G2SKk
