Continental Faces Manslaughter Charges

Conviction would result in multi-million dollar fine
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 3, 2008 12:17 PM CDT
Continental Faces Manslaughter Charges
In this Tuesday, Nov. 7, 2000, file photo, an investigator inspect remnants of a crashed Concorde supersonic jet in a hangar in Dugny, north of Paris.    (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

Continental Airlines will have to stand trial for manslaughter over its role in the explosive crash of an Air France jet, a French judge ruled today. Five individuals have also been charged in the 2000 accident, which saw a Concorde jet burst into flames while leaving a Paris runway, killing all 109 people aboard and four others on the ground.

Investigators later determined that the crash was caused by an errant strip of metal that had fallen to the runway from a Continental plane. The strip ripped through the Concorde’s tires, which in turn ruptured the jet’s fuel tank. If convicted, Continental will face millions in fines, the Guardian reports. (More Continental Airlines stories.)

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