It was raining. Not just a drizzle, but a massive, blinding summer downpour that turned the sky over Mississauga into a dark, heavy blanket of gray. August 2, 2005, started out as a normal Tuesday for the passengers on Air France Flight 358. They were coming from Paris. They were tired. Most just wanted to get through customs and go home. But as the Airbus A340 descended toward Toronto, everything changed in a matter of seconds.
The Pearson International Airport crash remains one of the most incredible stories in aviation history.
People often call it the "Miracle in Toronto." Honestly, when you look at the footage of that charred, broken fuselage sitting in the Etobicoke Creek ravine, it’s hard to believe anyone walked away. Yet, they did. All 309 people on board survived.
It wasn't luck. Well, maybe a little bit was luck, but mostly it was a combination of quick thinking by the crew and the way planes are built these days.
The Chaos on Runway 24L
Airplanes are designed to handle bad weather. Pilots train for it constantly. But the storm hitting Toronto that afternoon was particularly nasty. We’re talking about a severe thunderstorm cell sitting right over the airport. Lightning was popping everywhere.
At 4:01 p.m., the wheels touched down.
Normally, that’s the moment of relief. You hear the engines roar as the thrust reversers engage, and you start reaching for your carry-on. But Flight 358 didn't slow down the way it should have. It touched down too far down the runway—nearly halfway, actually.
The plane was moving way too fast.
The pilots couldn't stop it. The Airbus skidded off the end of Runway 24L at about 150 kilometers per hour. It didn't just stop in the grass; it plummeted into a 40-foot-deep ravine and burst into flames.
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Why the Pearson International Airport crash was so survivable
If you saw a plane fly into a ditch and explode today, you'd assume the worst. So why did everyone get out?
First off, the cabin crew didn't panic. They had less than two minutes to get 297 passengers out of a burning wreck. Two minutes. Think about how long it takes most people just to find their shoes under the seat. Some of the emergency slides didn't even work properly because they were damaged in the crash or the wind was too high.
Passengers were jumping out of the plane into a ravine filled with mud and fire.
The interior materials of the aircraft also played a huge role. Modern planes use fire-retardant materials that don't give off toxic smoke as quickly as older models did. This gave people those extra few seconds of breathable air they needed to find the exits.
What the TSB Investigation Actually Found
After the smoke cleared, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) spent years digging through the wreckage. They wanted to know if it was mechanical failure or human error.
Basically, it was a bit of both, mixed with some really bad timing.
The TSB report pointed out that the pilots didn't calculate the landing distance required for the contaminated (wet) runway accurately enough given the wind conditions. There was a significant tailwind. When you have wind pushing you from behind, you need a lot more runway to stop.
They also didn't deploy the spoilers or the thrust reversers immediately. It took several seconds. In aviation, several seconds is an eternity.
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- The Runway: 24L was relatively short for a heavy long-haul jet in a storm.
- The Landing Point: They touched down roughly 4,000 feet into a 9,000-foot runway.
- The Decision: There was no formal requirement in the Air France manual at the time for pilots to conduct landing distance calculations specifically for thunderstorms.
It’s easy to armchair quarterback these things years later, but in the cockpit, it was a high-stress environment with zero visibility.
Misconceptions About the Crash
You’ll hear people say the plane was hit by lightning and that’s what caused the crash. That’s a myth. While lightning was present and likely a huge distraction, airplanes are basically Faraday cages. They get hit by lightning all the time without crashing.
Another common mistake is thinking the plane ran out of fuel. Nope. In fact, the fuel is what caused the massive fireball after the crash. The tanks ruptured when the plane hit the ravine.
Some people also blame the airport for having a ravine at the end of the runway. This actually led to some pretty big changes. After the Pearson International Airport crash, there was a massive push to improve "Runway End Safety Areas" (RESAs) across Canada. The idea is to have a flat, clear space at the end of every runway so if a plane overshoots, it doesn't fall into a hole.
The Human Element: Stories From the Ravine
One of the most striking things about this event was the response from the public.
Drivers on Highway 401—one of the busiest highways in the world—literally stopped their cars and ran toward the burning plane. They were helping passengers climb out of the muddy ditch and giving them rides to the terminal.
Can you imagine that? You’re driving home from work, and suddenly there’s an Airbus A340 on fire in a ditch next to the highway.
Roel Bramer, a passenger on the flight, famously described the scene as "total chaos," yet somehow organized. People were helping each other. There wasn't a stampede. That's rare. Usually, in those situations, the "lizard brain" takes over. But the Flight 358 passengers stayed remarkably calm.
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Lessons That Changed Aviation Forever
We learn from every disaster. Or "near-disaster" in this case.
Because of what happened at Pearson, pilot training for "Go-Around" procedures in bad weather was intensified. A "Go-Around" is when the pilot decides the approach isn't safe and climbs back up to try again. The TSB argued that a Go-Around should have been executed on Flight 358 long before the wheels touched the tarmac.
We also saw changes in how cabin crews are trained to manage "passenger luggage interference." One of the biggest dangers during the evacuation was people trying to grab their laptops and bags.
Seriously. Don't do that.
If your plane is on fire, leave the MacBook. It’s not worth your life or the life of the person behind you.
Safety Steps for the Modern Traveler
Aviation is incredibly safe. It's actually the safest it has ever been in 2026. But you can still do things to make yourself safer based on what we learned from the Air France 358 incident.
- Count the rows. When you sit down, count how many rows you are from the nearest exit. If the cabin fills with smoke, you won't be able to see. You’ll have to feel your way out.
- Keep your shoes on during takeoff and landing. A lot of the passengers in the Pearson crash lost their shoes in the mud and had to walk through fire and broken glass barefoot.
- Watch the briefing. Every plane is different. The exit on a 737 isn't the same as an A350.
- Check the RESA status. If you’re a nervous flyer, you can actually look up which airports have updated Runway End Safety Areas. Most major international hubs, including Pearson, have made significant upgrades since 2005.
The Pearson International Airport crash wasn't just a news headline; it was a turning point for Canadian aviation safety. It proved that even in the worst-case scenario—a hull loss and a fire—survival is possible if the engineering holds up and the people on board know what to do.
Next time you’re flying into Toronto and it’s a bit bumpy, just remember how much has been learned since that rainy August day. The systems are better, the runways are safer, and the crews are trained specifically because of Flight 358.
Check the weather for your destination 24 hours in advance to manage your own expectations about potential delays or diversions. If a pilot decides to divert to Montreal or Ottawa because of a storm in Toronto, thank them. They are avoiding the exact conditions that led to the 2005 overshoot. Always prioritize safety over the convenience of an on-time arrival.