All events

Every event we cover, by year.

Filters1

Filter events

Decade

Aircraft

All aircraft

Aircraft

Airbus A330 (3)

Country

All countries

Country

Phase of flight

Cause

All causes

Cause

Icing (2)
Loss of control (2)
Pilot error (1)
Unknown or disappearance (1)

Who survived

Air France

Sort by

Photo: Pete Macklin / CC BY-SA 2.0
1 June 2009

Air France Flight 447

The Rio to Paris flight lost over the Atlantic

Open event

On 1 June 2009 Air France Flight 447, an Airbus A330 flying overnight from Rio de Janeiro to Paris, stalled at 38,000 feet over the Atlantic after ice crystals blocked its airspeed probes and the autopilot disconnected. It struck the ocean four and a half minutes later, and all 228 people on board were killed.
3 video perspectives
- Air France Flight 447: The Night the A330 Vanished From Contact
  
  This four-minute Smithsonian Channel clip covers the first hours after Air France Flight 447 disappeared over the Atlantic on 1 June 2009.
  
  Published 5 Dec 2022
- Air France Flight 447: Pitot Icing, Alternate Law and the Stall
  
  Airline captain Petter of Mentour Pilot explains the loss of Air France Flight 447 on 1 June 2009 in detail.
  
  Published 11 Dec 2022
- Air France Flight 447: Mayday and the Search for the Recorders
  
  This Mayday episode follows the BEA's investigation into Air France Flight 447, which disappeared over the Atlantic on 1 June 2009.
  
  Published 23 Aug 2023