What happened
The flight departed normally on runway 28R, rotating and lifting off at 145 knots. Shortly after takeoff, the autopilot was engaged while climbing. During the climb, the crew initiated noise-abatement procedures, which required reducing engine power and retracting the flaps. At an altitude of approximately 1,772 feet, the droop lever was moved to the up position while the aircraft was traveling at only 162 knots. This configuration change placed the aircraft into a stall regime.
The aircraft's stick-pusher device activated, causing the autopilot to disengage and the nose to pitch down. However, because the elevator trim remained in its previous position, the angle of incidence increased, triggering subsequent stick-push activations. At this stage, the crew manually inhibited the stall recovery system by pulling the lever. This action caused the aircraft to pitch up rapidly, leading to a loss of airspeed and altitude. The aircraft entered a true aerodynamic stall followed by a deep stall from which recovery was impossible at that altitude. The aircraft struck a field adjacent to the A30 motorway, resulting in 118 fatalities.
Findings
The investigation identified several contributing factors to the accident. The primary cause was the retraction of the droops at a speed approximately 60 knots below the required threshold, which induced the stall. Additionally, the crew failed to monitor airspeed errors or the movement of the droop lever and did not correctly diagnose the warnings provided by the stick-shaker and pusher. The manual inhibition of the stall recovery system further prevented the aircraft from recovering.
Underlying factors included a lack of crew awareness regarding configuration stall risks and the potential for simultaneous stick-shaker and pusher activation. The investigation also noted that a medical condition affecting the pilot's concentration, along with distractions on the flight deck, contributed to the failure to maintain adequate speed and proper monitoring duties.