A Concorde crash in 2000 that left 113 dead was caused partially by the criminal negligence of Continental and a mechanic who works for the company, a French court ruled Monday.
The airline and the employee were found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in the Air France Concorde accident on July 25, 2000.
During the takeoff of a Continental DC-10 from Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport, investigators said a titanium strip fell on the runway, and that the Concorde struck the debris when it subsequently took off. The Concorde blew a tire, burst into flames and crashed into an airport hotel.
Continental was fined $268,400 and ordered to pay more than $1 million to Air France. Investigators said the titanium part was improperly installed.
Calling the ruling "absurd," Continental said it plans to appeal the decision.
The French judge also found aircraft manufacturer EADS partly responsible for the crash and ordered EADS to pay 30% of damages to victims involved in the case.
Engineers could have acted much earlier to correct well-known design flaws in the plane, the judge ruled.
Air France, which has paid an unspecified sum in damages to the families of passengers on the aircraft, posted a statement on its website saying it "welcomed the decision of the criminal court which recognizes Continental's full criminal and civil liability in the Concorde accident."