I am re-reading this last post in the light of a French court decision lately in favor of a general release of all charges against Airbus and Air France in the AF447 crash and feel highly depressed. Scarcely had regulation of public transportation sunk into such a dark age (the secret pact around MH17 inquiry is an acute example). The BEA latest series of high profile inquiry results and aggressive moves toward non-European industry has turn it fully into a political body soaked with partisanship. I fear that Germanwings was not a climax of miss handling cases but the opening set of a new norm.
This court decision – if not reversed – is putting discredit on all professionals.
The ten years of investigation into the crash of flight AF447 from Rio to Paris, which killed 228 passengers and crew members on June 1, 2009, could lead to no prosecution. The investigating judges have dismissed the case for manslaughter against Airbus and Air France.
In July 2019, the Public Prosecutor’s office had requested Air France to face trial for manslaughter and negligence in the training of pilots and dismissed the case against Airbus. However, the investigating judges of the Paris court decided not to follow the requisitions of the Public Prosecutor, and also dismissed the case against Air France. “This accident is obviously due to a conjunction of elements that never occurred, and thus highlighted dangers that could not be perceived before this accident,” said the judges, quoted by AFP.
The main association of relatives of victims, “Association entraide et solidarité vol AF447”, will appeal a judgment “that insults the memory of victims”, told its lawyer Alain Jakubowicz. The association had already contested the decision of the Public Prosecutor’s office, stating that no trial “can only comfort Airbus in a feeling of impunity harmful to the safety of all”. In June 2019, the SNPL, Air France’s main pilot union, had also demanded everyone involved in the crash to be sent to court.
https://www.aerotime.aero/clement.ch…rbus-dismissed
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