At 1153 on 2nd August 2005, AF358, an Airbus A340-313 took off from runway 09L at Paris CDG Airport en route for Toronto/Lester B Pearson Airport (CYYZ) Ontario. On board were 297 passengers and 12 crew members. Among their other pre-flight activities, the flight crew members obtained the weather forecast for their arrival, which included the possibility of thunderstorms. In anticipation of potential weather-related delays on arrival, an additional 3 metric tonnes (3000 kg) of fuel was uploaded to allow for an extra 23 minutes of holding time at Toronto. The captain was Pilot Flying (PF) for the take off and the first part of the flight. The co-pilot would be PF during the second part, which included the approach and landing at CYYZ.