TORONTO, 4 August 2005 — An Air France trans-atlantic jetliner with 309 people aboard overshot the runway at Toronto international airport and exploded after plunging into a muddy ravine, but with flames licking around the fuselage and smoke filling the cabin all passengers and crew made a desperate escape.
Canadian officials said 43 people were treated for minor injuries in the fireball landing, which occurred late Tuesday in stormy weather.
Canadian Transport minister Jean Lapierre said it was a “miracle” that no one was killed in the accident, which left the Airbus A340 jet a burning wreck some 200 meters (660 feet) from the runway.
It was the first operational accident involving the A340 four-engined, ultra long-haul jet in 13 years of commercial service.
Air France boss Cyril Spinetta told a news conference in Paris that the plane — a relatively new A340-300 delivered in 1999 — left the French capital with no sign of technical problem. It had last been inspected July 5.
As it approached Canada, Toronto’s Pearson International Airport was closed because of violent storms in the region, but authorities reopened the runways shortly before the Air France plane arrived in the airspace, he said.
Air France executive director Pierre-Henri Gourgeon, sitting next to him, said the aircraft “was probably the first to land after the reopening of the runways, which were closed a maximum of 30 minutes.” At first, the landing appeared to go normally, despite the blustery winds and thundery skies. Passengers applauded as they touched down.
But suddenly there was a loud jolt and the aircraft ran 200 meters (660 feet) past the end of the runway and plowed into the wooded gulley.
Passengers quickly hurtled down toboggan escape chutes and raced for safety seconds before the wreckage was engulfed in enormous fireballs. One of the survivors was a nine-month-old child.
“As soon as the plane stopped, they immediately opened the side of the plane where they couldn’t see any flames, and then they told us to jump,” said passenger Olivier Dubois. “And we all began jumping and running. We were running really fast... it was really, really scary. Very, very scary.” Another passenger, journalist Gilles Medioni, said that when the plane touched down “Everything was happening very quickly. People got up from their seats. There was a smell of smoke, of kerosene and people looked for the emergency exits.” Some believed the plane had been hit by lightning.
“I saw lightning,” said one passenger, Roel Bramar. “Maybe the plane had already been hit by lightning. The reason I’m mentioning that is because just as we landed, the lights turned off. And that’s unusual. So I’m sure that the bad weather was responsible.” But Gourgeon said: “I don’t think there was any lightning strike.” He noted that a sudden blackout of the plane’s cabin lighting observed by several passengers occurred only “when the plane came to a stop.” The landing itself had been “normal,” he said. “But there was probably a lot of water on the runway,” and the weather was “severe.”
Spinetta, who traveled to Toronto later yesterday with his chief of air operations, a psychologist, nurses, maintenance personnel and some 20 Air France ground staff, explained that only a thorough examination of the plane’s black box flight recorder could give a clear idea of what went wrong.
“We are told that the plane probably landed a little late, and that’s why it’s off 200 meters from the runway,” Lapierre, the Canadian transport minister, was quoted as saying by the Globe and Mail newspaper in Toronto.
While several witnesses said they saw lightning hit the plane, media reports also highlighted poor visibility or the possibility that the jet aquaplaned when the pilot tried to brake.
Spinetta said the four-engined plane was in the hands of its 43-year-old co-pilot — a man with “very solid experience” and 10,700 hours of flying time — at the time of the landing.
Asked whether there was disagreement between the Air France cockpit crew and Canadian air traffic control over the opportunity to land in the storm, Spinetta responded: “It doesn’t seem so, but I say that with caution.” Air France shares were trading 1.82 percent lower at 13.48 euros mid-yesterday.
The airline posted a list on its website saying that the aircraft was carrying 297 passengers and 12 crewmembers. Most of the passengers — more than 200 — were French or Canadian citizens, while there were also 19 Italians, 14 US citizens, eight Indians and seven Britons, it said.
Air France added that it was doing everything to help the passengers and assist their families.
