Nearly 12 years after Air Algérie Flight AH5017 crashed in Mali, as it travelled from Burkina Faso to Algeria, the Paris Correctional Court will hear the case against Spanish airline Swiftair from Monday.
The hearings, set to run until 2 April, follow French judges' rejection of a second attempt to refer preliminary questions to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJUE), the EU's highest court.
The plane, which has been leased by Air Algérie from Spanish carrier Swiftair, crashed over northern Mali on 24 July, 2014, killing all 116 people on board – including 54 French nationals, 23 Burkinabé and six Spanish crew members.
Departing Ouagadougou for Algiers, the plane reached an altitude of 31,000 feet before erroneous engine pressure ratio (EPR) readings triggered a disastrous chain of events. Ice that covered engine sensors resulted in false data, leading to technical issues that the crew could not handle.
Double jeopardy
Swiftair invoked the “double jeopardy” principle, which prevents a person from being tried twice for the same offence after they have been acquitted or convicted, after a Spanish provisional dismissal, hoping the CJUE would block French proceedings.
In April 2025, the CJUE deemed Paris's referral inadmissible. But French judges ruled the Spanish case had "no concrete link" to EU law, dismissing Swiftair's bid.
Swiftair lawyers now complain that the "question is left hanging".
But representatives of the families of the victims, quoted by Africaradio.com, expressed relief at the long-awaited trial. "We're finally moving towards truth and accountability," said the defence team of one family.
Investigating magistrates highlighted "grave failings" by Swiftair, including inadequate crew training after an eight-month lay-off without refresher sessions. Pilots, who were seasonal workers, missed critical warnings pointing at technical anomalies.
According to analysis of the accident, existing problems included an auto-throttle fix in March 2014 that caused EPR errors, plus an engine surge leading to an aborted takeoff in June of that year.
Swiftair blames external issues such as the weather. A report by the French Bureau of Investigations and Analyses confirmed that ice caused the EPR faults, but also said the accident was the result of a “chain of events", amplified by poor crew training, inadequate procedures and aircraft systems that failed to alert or recover in time.
(with newswires)
