A judge yesterday vowed to discover who was to blame for the horror Concorde crash that killed 113.

Five individuals and America’s Continental Airlines denied manslaughter as their trial opened near Paris.The names of the victims – 109 on the jet and four on the ground – were first read to a hushed courtroom by Judge Dominique Andreassier.

The Air France jet burst into flames on take-off at Charles de Gaulle airport on July 25, 2000 after one of its tyres was holed. It then plunged earthwards in a ball of fire.

The terrifying images were caught on film and beamed around the world. An official French inquiry has already blamed Continental, concluding that a titanium strip fell off one of its DC-10s on the runway, punctured the Concorde’s tyre which shattered, in turn holing a fuel tank.

With still-grieving relatives gathered in the public gallery to see justice done, Judge Andreassier promised the trial would “shed light on the tragedy”.

Lawyer Olivier Metzner, for Continental, argued the iconic plane was badly maintained, and “had problems with its wheels”. But Mr Metzner said the theory that the titanium strip caused the crash was false and claimed Air France should be on trial. He added: I question the independence of the investigators, I question those who did not want the truth, I question Air France and it is evident that on July 25, 2000, the Concorde should never have been allowed to take off.”