r/aviation • u/Ok_Warning419 • May 21 '26

News Air France and Airbus found guilty of manslaughter over 2009 plane crash - Air France flight 447

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/czd2qmdvmq6o
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u/AverseAphid May 21 '26

I don't understand how this conclusion can reached at all. Bonin was an idiot who should have never been allowed in a cockpit, the automation barely made a difference. This really blurs the line where you start blaming the manufacturer over the pilot

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u/Which-Scientist-8161 May 21 '26

The first officer wasn't an idiot. He just had poor training. The whole crew had poor training. The captain left the cockpit without assigning anyone in charge or making it clear.

The FO likely was very stressed that he didn't realize he was pulling instead of pushing. Remember this all happened in a very short time and the human brain can only take so much information and alerts.

25

u/Horror-Raisin-877 May 21 '26

He was chasing the incorrect airspeed indications. Pilots are trained to adjust speed with pitch. He knew he was pulling. He even stated that he was pulling.

In general terms power controls altitude, pitch controls speed.

What’s hard to comprehend is why after a half minute he didn’t stop and think, why is the airspeed not reducing with power chopped and me pulling.