French court overturns Concorde crash conviction

Continenal Airlines' manslaughter conviction was overturned

Published November 29, 2012 2:30PM (EST)

VERSAILLES, France (AP) — A French appeals court overturns a manslaughter conviction against Continental Airlines for the July 2000 crash of an Air France Concorde that killed 113 people.

The crash led to the Concorde program, a synonym for luxury but a commercial failure despite its advanced technology, to be taken out of service in 2003. Air France and British Airways had jointly operated the program.

Thursday's ruling follows a 2010 case where a French court had convicted Continental Airlines Inc. and one of its mechanics for the crash and imposed about €2 million ($2.7 million) in damages and fines on the carrier.

In the 2000 accident, the jet slammed into a hotel near Paris' Charles de Gaulle airport soon after taking off, killing all 109 people aboard and four on the ground.


By Associated Press

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