Concorde, a joint Anglo-French project, withdrawn from service in 2003. A French court Tuesday launched the trial of five men and a US airline over the Concorde disaster . 113 people were killed when the supersonic jet struck a hotel near Paris in 2000. The prosecution case agrees with the facts set out in the final accident report, which, by international law, was written from an entirely different investigation and thus cannot be introduced in court. It alleges that improper maintenance of an American airliner and failure to detect design flaws with the Concorde were responsible for the Air France jet's crash, to an extent that makes the six defendants guilty of involuntary manslaughter. Both official investigations found that a Continental Airlines McDonnell Douglas DC-10 had taken off five minutes before Concorde with an improvised repair. A metal strip had been machined by mechanics instead of using a certified part. This strip dropped off the aircraft, leaving a 43cm (17in) piece of titanium on the runway. Prosecutors and investigators concluded that as Concorde struck the part on takeoff a tyre burst and ripped apart, sending chunks of rubber flying. A large piece slammed into the underside of the wing hard enough to trigger a pressure wave that ruptured the fuel tank. Damaged wiring is believed to have been responsible for igniting this, creating a trailing fireball as the aircraft took off bound for New York. Concorde's pilots attempted to circle round for an emergency landing back at Charles de Gaulle Airport , but instead struck a hotel approximately three kilometres (two miles) from the airport. All 109 passengers and crew were on board, as well as four people in the hotel, were killed. The majority of victims were Germans heading to meet up with a cruise liner for a Caribbean holiday, the remainder of the 100 passengers were from Austria. John Taylor, the Continental mechanic who is alleged to have built and fitted the nonstandard part, and his boss Stanley Ford, have been targeted for prosecution. Both individuals and their employer deny responsibility. Also charged are two members of the UK-French firm behind Concorde - Aérospatiale , who have since merged into Airbus parent EADS . Henri Perrier was head of testing for Concorde and the aircraft's chief engineer was Jacques Herubel; both have been charged for a perceived failure to locate and rectify design flaws with Concorde. The former chief of civil aviation, Claude Frantzen, is facing charges on the same basis. Each individual can be imprisoned for up to three years and fined up to €50,900 (US$71,000. Continental face a fine of up to €375,000 (US$520,000). The airline's defence claims the part on the runway had no role to play in the accident. TV channel Canal+ previously suggested the investigations and prosecution were a coverup of more serious issues with Concorde. The broadcast alleged Concorde erupted into flames long before getting as far down the runway as the strip. Continental's lawyers say they can call 28 witnesses to give similar evidence and told the Le Parisien that they would seek a dismissal of the charges today. The case opened with judge Dominique Andreassier reading out every one of the 113 names of the deceased, followed by the charges against the six, in the court in Pontoise . Related news 
Concorde, a joint Anglo-French project, withdrawn from service in 2003. A French court Tuesday launched the trial of five men and a US airline over the . 113 people were killed when the supersonic jet struck a hotel near Paris in 2000. The prosecution case agrees with the facts set out in the final accident report, which, by international law, was written from an entirely different investigation and thus cannot be introduced in court. It alleges that improper maintenance of an American airliner and failure to detect design flaws with the Concorde were responsible for the jet's crash, to an extent that makes the six defendants guilty of involuntary manslaughter. Both official investigations found that a Continental Airlines had taken off five minutes before Concorde with an improvised repair. A metal strip had been machined by mechanics instead of using a certified part. This strip dropped off the aircraft, leaving a 43cm (17in) piece of on the runway. Prosecutors and investigators concluded that as Concorde struck the part on takeoff a tyre burst and ripped apart, sending chunks of rubber flying. A large piece slammed into the underside of the wing hard enough to trigger a that ruptured the fuel tank. Damaged wiring is believed to have been responsible for igniting this, creating a trailing fireball as the aircraft took off bound for New York. Concorde's pilots attempted to circle round for an emergency landing back at , but instead struck a hotel approximately three kilometres (two miles) from the airport. All 109 passengers and crew were on board, as well as four people in the hotel, were killed. The majority of victims were Germans heading to meet up with a cruise liner for a Caribbean holiday, the remainder of the 100 passengers were from Austria. John Taylor, the Continental mechanic who is alleged to have built and fitted the nonstandard part, and his boss Stanley Ford, have been targeted for prosecution. Both individuals and their employer deny responsibility. Also charged are two members of the UK-French firm behind Concorde - , who have since merged into Airbus parent . Henri Perrier was head of testing for Concorde and the aircraft's chief engineer was Jacques Herubel; both have been charged for a perceived failure to locate and rectify design flaws with Concorde. The former chief of civil aviation, Claude Frantzen, is facing charges on the same basis. Each individual can be imprisoned for up to three years and fined up to €50,900 (US$71,000. Continental face a fine of up to €375,000 (US$520,000). The airline's defence claims the part on the runway had no role to play in the accident. TV channel previously suggested the investigations and prosecution were a coverup of more serious issues with Concorde. The broadcast alleged Concorde erupted into flames long before getting as far down the runway as the strip. Continental's lawyers say they can call 28 witnesses to give similar evidence and told the that they would seek a dismissal of the charges today. The case opened with judge Dominique Andreassier reading out every one of the 113 names of the deceased, followed by the charges against the six, in the court in . Related news Sister links
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Concorde disaster
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Air France
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McDonnell Douglas DC-10
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titanium
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pressure wave
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Charles de Gaulle Airport
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Aérospatiale
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EADS
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Canal+
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Le Parisien
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Pontoise
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Sister links