Air France 447: The Pilot Errors that Caused a High-Altitude Stall

The "unstallable" plane fell from 35,000 feet in just 4 minutes. On June 1, 2009, Air France Flight 447 vanished over the South Atlantic. In this episode of the Black Box Aviation Podcast, Tom and Mike analyze the official accident report to uncover how a simple technical glitch—frozen Pitot tubes—turned into a fatal catastrophe.

We break down the critical factors, including:

• Airbus Alternate Law: What happens when the plane stops protecting the pilot?

• The 75 Warnings: Why the stall warning was ignored for nearly a minute.

• CRM Breakdown: How a lack of communication in the cockpit led to the ultimate error.

• The Recovery That Never Happened: Why the crew kept pulling back on the stick instead of pushing forward.

Whether you're an aviation professional or a true-crime enthusiast, this deep dive into the AF447 crash explores the human psychology and technical failures that changed pilot training forever.