00:00It's the first public demonstration of the world's most sophisticated passenger jet.
00:07Okay, you're at 100 feet there.
00:10The Airbus A320 is being introduced to the world.
00:14Mesdames et messieurs, votre attention s'il vous plaît.
00:17L'Airbus A320 Avenue.
00:19That introduction turns into a fatal calamity.
00:2230 feet.
00:2430.
00:26It could not possibly have come at a worse time for Airbus.
00:40The crash was a major embarrassment.
00:44There's enormous pressure on investigators.
00:48If Airbus is to survive, they must find the answer to one crucial question.
00:53Was it the pilot, or was it the plane?
00:57It's 2.30 in the afternoon on June the 26th, 1988.
01:27An unusual charter flight prepares to depart Basel-Moulouse airport in France, near the Swiss border.
01:36Captain Michel Asseline is one of Air France's most distinguished pilots.
01:43Though only 44, he's the head of pilot training for the company's newest plane, the Airbus A320.
01:52It's only the third of its kind to roll off the assembly line.
01:55Captain Asseline flew this very aircraft from the factory in Toulouse just two days earlier.
02:01I was in charge of the launching of the A320 in Air France.
02:04The company used me to promote the aircraft.
02:07Speeches to make was constantly on the television, on the newspaper.
02:12Air charter 296 would like to roll, please.
02:16Air charter 296.
02:17Asseline's first officer, Pierre Mazier, is also a senior Air France pilot.
02:21Air charter 296.
02:23He's invited two off-duty flight attendants to come along for the ride on this special flight.
02:28The aircraft is booked to perform a low-altitude flyover at a local airshow.
02:34There are 130 people on board this A320, which is unusual for an airshow demonstration flight.
02:44They have no luggage.
02:46For some, it's their first time on an airplane.
02:51There are even children, like seven-year-old Mariama Barry, unaccompanied by their parents.
02:58After the flyover, they will be taken on a sightseeing tour around Mont Blanc, the highest peak in Western Europe.
03:07Most got their tickets as promotional gifts from a local bank and newspaper.
03:15Marie Schreiber is a young reporter covering the launch of the new plane.
03:22As a journalist, I was thrilled to be on the flight, to have a chance to see how people reacted inside the plane.
03:34Another journalist aboard, Jean-Claude Bauche, has been busy recording the event.
03:42As I got on the plane, I thought, great, this is going to be an unforgettable experience.
03:46And it really was unforgettable.
03:52The A320 is the first civil aircraft to use fly-by-wire, a cutting-edge technology that computerizes flight controls.
04:00The system had previously mainly been used by the military.
04:04On the fly-by-wire system, the pilot essentially flies the computer, and the computer flies the aircraft.
04:15Fly-by-wire alters the relationship between pilot and plane.
04:20It gives computers the ability to override human inputs to prevent pilot error.
04:27The A320's flight computer won't let its human operators do anything it determines to be dangerous.
04:37Airbus has become the first civil aircraft maker to embrace this technology.
04:43It hopes this will give it an edge over its longtime American rival, Boeing.
04:50In its first public presentation, Airbus has a lot on the line.
04:56OK, tell me what you want in terms of speed and altitude.
04:59OK, then, take our right turn.
05:02We go nice and easy to find our thing.
05:04We tried to demonstrate the capability of this aircraft.
05:07To say we wanted to show off, not exactly.
05:10We wanted to make a good job, and we were sure to make a good job.
05:13Once we identify the airfield, we extend flaps to three.
05:16We'll do the flyover at 100, landing gear out.
05:21And you just leave it up to me.
05:23I'll give it alpha max.
05:26Done it 20 times.
05:28OK.
05:29Captain Asseline is planning a breathtaking maneuver.
05:33A low-altitude, nose-high flyby at alpha max.
05:38This is the slowest a plane can fly without stalling.
05:41Ladies and gentlemen.
05:45Hello, and welcome aboard this Airbus A320.
05:48Which was put into service just two days ago.
05:51We will soon be taking off for a short sightseeing flight,
05:55which will start from the Absheim Flying Club,
05:58and then we'll be flying around Mont Blanc.
06:00I wish you a very pleasant flight.
06:04That's done.
06:07ACF 296Q, clear for takeoff.
06:11runway 60.
06:14We're rolling.
06:19Takeoff.
06:20Go.
06:22Parameters normal.
06:26100.
06:27100.
06:28It's already requesting flight.
06:30You see that?
06:31Yes, that happens.
06:32I know the book.
06:34V1.
06:35Rotate.
06:36Gear up.
06:37Flaps 1.
06:38Have to take a checklist completely.
06:39It's only a five-minute flight to Habshaim Airfield,
06:42where the airshow is being held.
06:50For this sleepy Alsatian town, the airshow is the highlight of the summer.
06:59The airshow drew more than 5,000 people.
07:04There was significant interest from the public.
07:07The airfield is so small, its coordinates aren't stored in the plane's navigation database.
07:13So the pilots must find it by sight.
07:16You're at eight nautical miles.
07:18You'll soon see it.
07:19There's the highway.
07:20We leave the highway to the left, don't we?
07:21No, to the right of the highway.
07:22It's slightly to the right of the highway.
07:23It's slightly to the right of the highway.
07:26There's the airfield.
07:49You've got it.
07:50Have you?
07:55The pilots have spotted the airfield late.
07:58They will have to hurry to descend to the planned altitude for the flyover at the airshow.
08:04A crowd is forming at the runway.
08:09Air charter 296, good afternoon.
08:12App chime, hello. We are coming into view of the airfield for the flyover.
08:16Yes, I can see. We're cleared. The sky is clear.
08:21Gear down.
08:24Okay, we're going in for a low altitude, low speed flyover. 296.
08:31Roger.
08:33Flaps 2.
08:34Quebec November Hotel at Saint-Fontaineble, 984.
08:38Okay. 984. Put in 984.
08:45Flaps 3.
08:47Flaps 3.
08:50That's the airfield. You confirm?
08:53Affirmative.
08:54Flight 296 makes a gentle turn to line up with the runway.
09:01The pilots must now lose more altitude and speed to get into position for the flyover.
09:07200.
09:09200.
09:09200.
09:12Mesdames et Messieurs, votre attention, s'il vous plaît.
09:15L'Airbus A320 Avenue.
09:16Okay, you're at 100 feet there.
09:23Watch it. Watch it. Watch it.
09:26The aircraft is now at the planned altitude.
09:29For Asseline, this will be the most delicate part of the maneuver.
09:34He must keep the plane in a stable position with the nose up, but not too high.
09:38I looked at the ground and said, look, he's not high enough, because you can see the grass right out your window.
09:46At travers the hublot.
09:48Okay. I'm okay there.
09:51Disconnect after throttle.
09:52He disables one of the plane's safety features so that the computer won't speed up the slow-moving plane.
10:00Only now, Captain Asseline sees a danger that threatens the lives of everyone on board.
10:10The A320's low-speed flyover at the Habshaim airfield is suddenly not going according to plan.
10:17There's a forest in the path of Captain Asseline's plane.
10:20He selects the highest thrust setting and pulls back on the controls, expecting the aircraft to pull up.
10:28But the plane keeps dropping.
10:39I started to see through the window tree branches.
10:43I was astonished.
10:44You can imagine being on a trail in a large vehicle, a bumpy trail, driving at 80 or 100 kilometers an hour, and you're shaking from all sides.
10:52It was like that.
10:54I was saying to myself, the plane has to stay in one piece, because if the plane stays whole, we'll be okay.
11:00If it breaks up, we're done for.
11:14Still full of fuel, the right wing of the jet is sheared off.
11:21The fuel ignites immediately on impact.
11:23We stopped very quickly.
11:35And on the ground, I broke my seat, just because I was holding very firmly.
11:38I broke my seat, and I could see a lot of flames all over.
11:43About 20 meters of flames around the cockpit, smoke coming from everywhere.
11:47The first officer is badly injured.
11:49And there's a lot of blood, and even with the full harness, he hit something in front of him.
11:57What the hell have you done?
12:01I don't know.
12:03I don't understand.
12:05There was a moment of silence when the plane finally stopped.
12:11Incredibly, the fuselage is still in one piece.
12:15Everyone has survived the impact.
12:17But they're not out of danger yet.
12:23So I lean to the right, and I see red flames.
12:26The windows were red.
12:27And I think, we held together, but we're going to burn to death.
12:34Then we heard somebody say, get out, get out, there's a fire.
12:38Get out, get out, there's a fire.
12:40Get out, get out, get out, get out, get out, get out, get out, get out, get out, get out, get out, get out, get out.
12:47Only two exits can be used for evacuation.
12:50The rest are engulfed in flames.
12:53But thick branches block one of the doors, making evacuation difficult.
12:57In the chaos of the cabin, some passengers struggle with their seatbelts.
13:07Marie-Francoise Frosch is one of the last passengers to leave her seat.
13:12She comes across Mariama Barry, who's trapped in her seat.
13:15Mariama Barry, she was seven, eight.
13:23After the accident, people pushing toward the exit pushed on the backs of the seats,
13:28the backs that folded over her, and then she was trapped by her seatbelt.
13:33No one saw her.
13:34She was forgotten.
13:35We didn't see her, we didn't forget her.
13:40But it's too late.
13:42Both are overcome by smoke before they can get off the plane.
13:45In the cockpit, Captain Asseline struggles to get his injured first officer out of the burning aircraft.
13:56I took them from the seat and built them, carried it, I don't know how, and I put it in a slide.
14:04When the passenger, all of them, the last one, was out of the plane, I saw my crew.
14:10They told me, Captain, Captain, they are all out.
14:15I couldn't believe it.
14:26But the crew is wrong.
14:29Not all the passengers have made it out.
14:31Marie-Francoise Froche, Mariama Barry, and another young boy are dead.
14:45In addition to the tragic loss of life, the accident is a PR disaster for Airbus.
14:57The crash could not possibly have come at a worse time for Airbus.
15:07They were trying out this new concept, which they had touted very widely as a new level of safety for civil flight.
15:17And here's a pilot going and crashing one.
15:22For those who actually saw the accident, and it was broadcast on the news media throughout the world the same evening that it happened, there was amazement.
15:32The crash was a major embarrassment.
15:45Investigators from France's Accident Investigation Bureau are on the scene of the crash within hours.
15:50They need to know why this demonstration flight ended in disaster.
15:58They recover the plane's data and voice recorders.
16:07Claude Bechet will head the investigation.
16:10Was it the pilot or was it the plane?
16:14We need to know.
16:15Like the pilots of flight 296, he also works for Air France as an airline captain.
16:20Let's get to work.
16:22Which is unusual for a state investigator.
16:25At that time, I was still an airline pilot.
16:30And I was in New York when the accident happened.
16:32And they sent me a telegram to ask me to come back to Paris as soon as possible.
16:39Apart from the flight recorders, investigators have a remarkable piece of evidence to consider.
16:48A high-quality video of the accident has been recorded by a French cameraman.
16:53It was the first time we had a video of an accident, you know.
16:58Normally, an accident happens in the middle of nowhere.
17:03Nobody is there with a camera to film it.
17:05The tape clearly shows the plane flying right at the trees at the end of the runway.
17:11It doesn't seem to be climbing at all.
17:19The cockpit voice recorder offers a confounding clue.
17:27Take off. Go. Run. Power.
17:2930. 30.
17:32It's clear the crew had no idea there was an obstacle at the end of the runway.
17:45Investigators are puzzled.
17:47How could a forest take a pilot by surprise?
17:56Bechet brings Captain Asseline in for questioning about the flyover at Habshaim.
18:00They need to know what his plan was.
18:04My intention was to carry out a flyover at slow speed.
18:09As a qualified A320 pilot, Claude Bechet is familiar with the plane's capabilities.
18:14Over the airstrip and we go to Alpha Max.
18:17Very good.
18:18He sees nothing wrong with Captain Asseline's plan.
18:22It was not bad.
18:23Making a slow pass was well planned.
18:26And he seemed to me to be very open and very ready to help to work with the investigation commission.
18:39Investigators turn their attention to how Air France prepared the flight crew for the airshow.
18:44They discover a memo setting out the rules for all airshow flights.
18:51What draws the attention of investigators is the minimum altitude Air France had selected for airshow flyovers.
18:58100 feet.
18:59It was in violation of national regulations.
19:03It should have been at 500 feet, as a matter of fact.
19:09But there was, they had at that time a tendency for pilots who were making airshows like that
19:16to go a little bit lower and sometimes much lower.
19:21Chief investigator Claude Bechet now wonders if there were any other mistakes in the planning of the flight.
19:26He soon learns that Air France's flight division didn't start drawing up a flight plan for the demonstration
19:37until less than 48 hours before the airshow.
19:41An Air France employee had prepared maps of the airfield for the crew of Flight 296.
19:49Investigators find a serious problem.
19:52The forest around Habshaim airfield did not show up on the photocopies.
20:03The employee who had put together the flight package didn't have an opportunity to discuss it with the crew.
20:10You were using an avocation shaft?
20:11While questioning Asseline, Bechet discovers that the pilots were also given little time to prepare.
20:18Here's the flight package.
20:20That's highly unusual for an airshow.
20:25My copilot told me, okay, we make a flight around Mont Blanc,
20:29and then we have to make two low pass of a small airport Habshaim.
20:34Told me there is nothing special.
20:35So for me it was a normal flight, a normal day.
20:40That preparation had not been complete,
20:43and there had been no briefing of the crew by the staff.
20:51Investigators then make an intriguing discovery of the crash site.
20:55They measure the height of the trees hit by Flight 296.
21:04They discover the average height of the forest to be only 40 feet.
21:11This poses an urgent question.
21:16How could an Airbus that was supposed to be flying at 100 feet
21:20hit trees less than half that height?
21:25It is clear to investigators that Flight 296 fatally deviated from its original flight plan,
21:36losing altitude before plunging into a forest.
21:40But only the black box data can help them understand how and why this had happened.
21:47Information from the A320's flight data recorder is recovered within hours of the crash.
21:52The device records information about 200 aircraft functions.
21:59It paints a detailed picture of how Flight 296 was operating in the final minutes of its journey.
22:08We could reconstruct the entire accident.
22:14We could live with the crew as the accident was happening.
22:27Investigators make two striking observations from the data.
22:30The first is that Flight 296 suffered no mechanical breakdowns.
22:39The second is that the A320 followed a very different flight path than the one Captain Asseline had planned.
22:48Instead of maintaining a stable airspeed and altitude,
22:52Flight 296 had slowed down and lost altitude as it performed the flyover.
22:56As the A320 crossed the Habshaim airfield,
23:02its speed dropped to only 112 knots.
23:05That's about as slow as an A320 can fly.
23:12The plane's deceleration was so dramatic,
23:15it was even visible on the video.
23:19Michel Asseline was one of Air France's top pilots.
23:22Claude Bechet is hard-pressed to understand how he could have mishandled such a high-profile flight.
23:32Pressed further, Asseline explains how the trouble started.
23:35You were using a navigation shaft?
23:38Yes.
23:38We had some difficulty locating the airfield.
23:44We leave the highway to the left, don't we?
23:47No, to the right of the highway.
23:49It's slightly to the right of the highway.
23:52There's the airfield.
23:53You've got it, have you?
23:55They spotted the airfield too late.
23:58So when they did,
24:00they reduced the power
24:01and they descended.
24:03So they rushed their descent
24:05in order to get into position for the flyover.
24:09And they were still slowing down
24:11when they reached the airfield.
24:14That's the airfield.
24:15You confirm?
24:17Affirmative.
24:18But then another problem emerged.
24:22The spectators were lined up on a different runway
24:25from the one the crew was heading for.
24:27The crew of Air France Flight 296
24:31is ill-prepared for their demonstration flight.
24:34In planning for the airshow,
24:35Air France only provided the crew
24:37with information for runway 2,
24:39Habshaim's only paved airstrip.
24:42But Captain Asseline sees the crowds aligned
24:44on a much shorter adjacent grass field.
24:47I was expecting a normal runway.
24:51But at the latest moment,
24:53I saw that it was a grass runway.
24:55Captain Asseline lined up with the grass strip.
24:58I had no idea that at the end of the runway
24:59it was a forest.
25:01For me, it was bushes only or something.
25:05Okay, you're at 100 feet there.
25:08Watch it.
25:09Watch it.
25:10Because they had to rush their descent,
25:12by the time Flight 296 got to the airfield,
25:15it was flying too fast.
25:17To lose speed, Captain Asseline kept the thrust
25:20on its lowest power setting,
25:22well below the setting pilots normally use
25:24for Alpha Max flight.
25:28But another serious problem was developing.
25:31The aircraft had dropped below 100 feet
25:34and was continuing to fall.
25:36And the crew didn't seem to notice.
25:40I'm okay there.
25:41Disconnect out of throttle.
25:43In a matter of seconds,
25:44the altitude had fallen to only 30 feet.
25:49What was extremely clear
25:51is that airplane
25:52was flying at approximately
25:5530 feet above the ground.
26:00Regardless of any other data,
26:02this data was extremely important.
26:04Take off. Go around power.
26:05No airplane of that size
26:08or of any other size
26:09should make a flight past that claw.
26:14The data is clear.
26:16You were at 30 feet, not 100.
26:19I believed I was at 100 feet.
26:22Claude Bechet is still uncertain
26:24how the A320 ended up
26:26so dangerously close to the ground.
26:28Captain Asseline insists his instruments failed him.
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