A Paris court has found Spanish airline Swiftair guilty of corporate manslaughter for a crash in northern Mali in 2014. Flight AH5017 was flying from Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso to Algiers, Algeria when it crashed just an hour after taking off. The accident occurred during a sand storm, near Gossi, northern Mali on July 24, 2014.
The cause of the crash
Investigators ruled that the anti-icing systems had not activated on the McDonnell Douglas MD-83, causing ice crystals to form on pressure sensors. This led to a reduction in engine power and stalling of the plane before it hit the ground. All 116 people onboard were killed, including 54 French citizens, 23 Burkinabe nationals and six Spanish crew members.
Over 12 years later, the trial opened in March 2026 in Paris. Swiftair have denied the charges and attempted to halt the trial due to a Spanish court dismissing the case without charges. The airline has ten days to appeal. In a statement, they reiterated that they should not be liable and all safety regulations were followed.
The trial verdict
On Monday Sept. 28, a judge ordered Swiftair to pay the maximum fine a company can face for corporate manslaughter, €225,000. The court said negligence in Swiftair’s training for icy conditions had played a part. The captain had failed to complete a proficiency check before take off and the crew had not had refresher flights after periods of inactivity. The original safety investigation found that neither pilot had received training on approach-to-stall or stall recovery since joining the airline.
A similar event also occurred 46 days before the crash involving a different Swiftair MD-83. EC-JUG began losing speed on June 8 2014 but the crew activated anti-icing before the engine stalled, and the flight continued normally. In 2024, another Swiftair plane crashed, killing one.
In May 2026, Airbus and Air France were similarly found guilty of corporate manslaughter for the downing of Flight AF447 from Rio de Janeiro to Paris in 2009.
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