Paris trial for 2009 plane crash that left 152 dead, 1 alive

By OLEG CETINIC and ALEX TURNBULL
The Associated Press

PARIS (AP) — The lone survivor of a 2009 plane crash that killed 152 people has attended the opening of the trial in Paris of the Yemeni airline which operated the flight. Bahia Bakari, then just 12, clung to floating debris from the plane for 11 hours in the Indian Ocean before being rescued. She called it “a miracle.” Now 25, she recently told France 3 television she would attend the trial with both “apprehension” and “relief.” The company, Yemenia, has been charged for Bakari’s injuries and the deaths of 65 French citizens. There are 560 plaintiffs in the case. French aviation investigators found that a pilot error was the cause of the crash. Yemenia has denied responsibility.