What happened
On the night of January 20, 1992, an Airbus A320, registration F-GGED, operated by Air Inter, was performing a scheduled flight from Lyon-Satolas to Strasbourg-Entzheim. The aircraft was carrying 90 passengers and 6 crew members.
During the approach to runway 05 at Strasbourg-Entzheim, the flight crew was operating under Instrument Meteorological Conditions (IMC). Having received information from the ATIS, the crew intended to perform an ILS approach for runway 23, followed by a visual transition to runway 05. As the aircraft descended, the crew requested a direct approach to runway 05, but due to the aircraft's altitude and speed, they instead opted to proceed with the ILS 23 procedure followed by a visual maneuver.
While descending toward the airfield, the aircraft struck the "La Bloss" mountain near Mont Sainte-Odile at an altitude of approximately 800 meters, roughly 10.5 nautical miles from the runway threshold. The impact resulted in the deaths of 5 crew members and left 82 passengers with injuries.
The investigation
The investigation was conducted by a commission established by the French Ministry of Equipment. The inquiry focused on several critical areas, including the flight trajectory, the performance of the Ground Proximity Warning System (GPWS), the certification of the autopilot, and the cockpit ergonomics of the A320. Technical experts examined the aircraft's navigation and flight control systems, specifically looking at how the Flight Management Guidance System (FMGS) and the Auto-Thrust (A/THR) functions interacted with pilot inputs during the descent. The commission also analyzed the crew's flight conduct and the effectiveness of the aircraft's survival capabilities following the impact.