Airport Mechanic Found Guilty in Fiery Concorde Crash

A French court has ruled that a Continental Airlines worker at Charles de Gaulle airport was responsible for a July 2000 crash that killed 113 people.

It appears the negligence of one man caused a supersonic Concorde jet to catch fire and slam into a nearby hotel as it took off from the Paris airport 10 years ago. A French court has found that John Taylor left a titanium strip from a Continental Airlines flight on the runway, and that as the jet took off it ran over the debris, shredding its tire and causing its fuel tank to catch fire. All 109 passengers were killed in the accident, and four people staying at the hotel that the jet crashed into also died. Taylor was ordered to pay a $2,650 fine and was handed down a 18-month suspended jail sentence. Continental Airlines was ordered to pay $265,000.