Seventeen years after an Air France Airbus A330 plunged into the Atlantic Ocean, killing all 228 people on board, a Paris appeals court has found both the airline and the aircraft manufacturer guilty of manslaughter, imposing the maximum fine of €225,000 each. The verdict overturns a 2023 acquittal that had infuriated victims' families across Brazil, France and beyond.

For relatives in Brazil, which lost 59 citizens in the disaster, the ruling brought a mix of relief and lingering anguish. Adriana Francisca Van Sluys, a Petrobras journalist who perished on the flight, was remembered by her family, who told Brazilian media they had never lost hope. Yet Nelson Faria Marinho, whose son died in the crash and who heads a victims' association, expressed disappointment, arguing that the verdict still fell short of true justice. In France, both companies announced they would appeal, potentially dragging the legal process into its third decade.

The court found that Airbus had underestimated problems with the aircraft's pitot tubes — speed sensors that iced over in the storm — and failed to properly inform airlines of the risk. Air France, meanwhile, was faulted for inadequate pilot training in handling high-altitude stalls. The combination of equipment failure and human error, the court concluded, constituted criminal negligence.

The appeals process will test whether France's corporate manslaughter laws can hold multinationals accountable for systemic failures. With the two dominant French companies vowing to fight the conviction, the case may ultimately reach the Court of Cassation, France's highest appeals court. For the families, who have waited nearly two decades, the prospect of further legal proceedings offers little comfort. The crash of Flight 447 remains a seminal moment in aviation safety, prompting reforms in pilot training and aircraft design. But the question of who bears ultimate responsibility — and at what cost — remains unresolved.