Aviation Law Articles

Commuter Plane Crash Claims 50 Victims

A Continental Airlines commuter plane crashed into a suburban Buffalo home, killing 50.

Justice Department Approves Merger of Northwest and Delta Air Lines

DOJ antitrust regulators announced today that they will not halt the merger of Delta and Northwest, approving a deal which will create the world's largest airline.

2 Small Planes Collide in Midair over Colorado, No Injuries Reported

Two single-engine Cessnas containing a total of six people collided in midair Wednesday over Colorado, but all people aboard the planes survived and no injuries were reported.

4 Killed in Crash of Maryland Medical Helicopter

Four people died Sunday when an emergency medical-services helicopter crashed in suburban Washington, D.C while attempting to land after picking up two automobile accident victims.

Federal Aviation Administration Passes New Rule Intended to Prevent Fuel Tank Explosions

12 years after TWA Flight 800 exploded off Long Island, killing 230, the FAA has passed a rule intended to prevent similar tragedies from occurring in the future.

Plane Accidents and Aviation Law

While plane accidents do not occur as often as auto accidents, they can result in significant injury or death. If you or a loved one has been injured in an aviation accident, consult a plane accident attorney as soon as possible.

French Court to Try Continental Airlines and Five Others over Concorde Crash

A Paris prosecutor has filed manslaughter charges against Houston-based Continental Airlines along with five individuals in connection with the 2000 Concorde jet crash left 113 people dead.

European Union Caps Airline Emissions, Angers International Trade Groups

A landmark agreement reached last week by the European Union to limit greenhouse gas emissions from aircraft has ignited controversy and protest from trade groups who question the legality of the Union's decision.

Manhattan Man Sues JetBlue for $2 Million over Forced Bathroom Break

A JetBlue flight was not such a happy jetting experience for Gokhan Mutlu: he says he was forced to relinquish his seat mid-flight and ride out the remainder of the trip in the plane's bathroom.

Crashed Wisconsin Medical Helicopter Was Lacking Recommended Safety Features

A medical helicopter which crashed late Saturday after dropping a patient off at a La Crosse hospital was not equipped with two high-tech safety features recommended by the National Transportation Safety Board to prevent crashes.

US Proposes Relaxation of Restrictions on International Airline Ownership

A US State Department official said today during a speech in Brussels that airline ownership rules in dozens of countries, including the US, should be eased in order to increase international investment in the industry.

Mass Transit Accidents

Mass transit accidents can cause serious injury and/or death to a group of individuals in a matter of seconds. Those injured in such accidents may be eligible for damages in these cases; consult a lawyer for a case evaluation.

Senate Begins Considering FAA Reauthorization Bill after Seven Month Delay

The U.S. Senate is slated today to begin considering S.1300, the Aviation Investment and Modernization Act, also known as the Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill, after an agreement not to impose aviation user fees was reached Friday.

American Airlines Grounds Thousands of Flights For Plane Inspections

Hundreds of thousands of passengers on American Airlines were left scrambling to arrange alternate travel plans this week after the airline cancelled over 3000 flights due to safety concerns.

FAA Inspectors and Southwest Airlines Whistleblowers Testify that Safety Violations Were Ignored

At a hearing held by the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, veteran Federal Aviation Administration inspectors and Southwest Airlines whistleblowers told lawmakers that the airline was allowed by FAA officials to repeatedly violate safety rules.

Hawai'i Air Travel Market Hit With Two Airline Closings Within Three Days

Two air carriers serving the Hawaiian Islands, Aloha Airlines and ATA Airlines, Inc., declared bankruptcy and shuttered their doors suddenly this week, leaving thousands without jobs and many passengers scrambling to arrange alternate travel plans.

Air Force Pilot Sues Manufacturer of Defective F-15

An Air Force pilot who was injured during a training exercise when his F-15 fighter disintegrated in mid-flight is suing Boeing, the aircraft’s manufacturer.

Federal Appellate Court Rejects New York Airline Passenger Bill of Rights

The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has struck down a New York law that allowed the state to penalize airlines for failing to provide adequate services for passengers during lengthy flight delays.

Single-Engine Prop Plane Makes Emergency Landing on Mesa, Arizona, Street

A 1973 Cessna 150L prop plane that developed engine difficulties immediately after takeoff Tuesday morning was forced to make an emergency landing on a busy Mesa, Arizona, thoroughfare.

Lloyds of London Settles Air Philippines Crash Suits for Record $165 Million

Insurers for AAR Parts Trading Inc. and Fleet Business Credit Corp. have agreed to pay $165 million to settle lawsuits brought by family members of 103 victims of the 2000 Air Philippines Flight 541 crash.

46 Dead After Venezuelan Plane Crashes into Andes Mountainside

A twin-prop passenger plane bound for Caracas crashed into a Venezuelan mountainside Thursday shortly after taking off from Merida, killing all 46 people aboard.

FAA Investigating Whether Airline Pilots Fell Asleep During Go! Flight

The Federal Aviation Administration is looking into a February 13 incident in which a Go! Airlines flight overshot its intended destination by over 15 miles and the pilots were unresponsive to attempts to contact them.

U.S. Air Force Pilot Dies Following Midair Collision during Training Exercise

One pilot has died and another remains hospitalized in the wake of a midair crash involving two F-15C Eagle fighter jets participating in a routine training mission over the Gulf of Mexico.

Comair Lawsuit to Have an Earlier Trial

A liability lawsuit filed against Comair over a 2006 plane crash in Lexington, Kentucky, that killed 49 people will head to trial four months earlier than planned.

Widow Receives $1 Million Settlement in Plane Crash Lawsuit

The widow of a man who died with three others in a 2006 airplane crash in Stafford County, Virginia, has settled her lawsuit against the estate of the pilot for $1 million.

57 Dead after Plane Crash in Turkey

An AtlasJet Airlines MD 83 jetliner has gone down in the mountains of southwest Turkey, killing everyone aboard.

TSA Chief Says Screeners Need Whistleblower Protection, Denies Tipping Screeners about Testing

Speaking Wednesday before the House Homeland Security Committee, U.S. Transportation Security Administration head Kip Hawley said he will take action to extend federal whistleblower protection to the nation's airport checkpoint and baggage screeners.

New Jersey Congressman Rebukes TSA Head over Insufficient Airport Whistleblower Protection

Rep. William Pascrell criticized the head of the Transportation Security Administration during a hearing Tuesday for being unfamiliar with several cases in which TSA employees suffered retaliatory treatment after reporting airport security problems.

Judge Mostly Clears Late WGN Radio Host of Fault for Plane Crash

An accident that claimed the lives of small aircraft pilot and radio host Bob Collins and two others has been ruled mostly the fault of an air traffic controller and the Federal Aviation Administration.

Passenger Jet Returns to Airport after Bird Cracks Windshield

AirTran Airways Flight 47, carrying 143 people and bound for Atlanta, returned to Philadelphia International Airport last Saturday with a cracked windshield and a slightly injured co-pilot.

Fatal Crash in Thailand Prompts Lawsuit Against Boeing

The recent plane crash at Phuket International Airport has resulted in a lawsuit being filed by a Chicago-based firm.

New Lawsuits in Comair Crash

The sole survivor of last year's deadly Comair crash in Kentucky and the widow of flight captain Jeffrey Clay have filed suits against the Federal Aviation Administration, Blue Grass Airport, and a runway chart-making company.

Boeing Sued over Deadly 2005 Plane Crash in Sumatra

One of the largest commercial airplane manufacturers in the world is being sued by the estates of nine Indonesian victims killed in the Mandala Airlines crash.

Attorneys Say NTSB's Comair Crash Ruling Will Have No Bearing in Court

Lawyers for both the airline and victims' families say opinions of the National Transportation Safety Board have historically not been admissible as evidence in lawsuits.

United Flight Clips the Tail of Another Plane at O'Hare

A jetliner departing from Chicago's O'Hare Airport took a chunk out of the tail of another large jet while preparing to take off for San Francisco on June 27 during a severe thunderstorm.

Pilot Error Blamed for Fatal Indiana Plane Crash

The National Transportation Safety Board says pilot error caused the April 20, 2006, crash that killed five Indiana University graduate students.

Emergency Flight Service Sues New York State Police

An emergency medical helicopter service has filed suit against New York State Police and the Onondaga County Sheriff's Department over a territory dispute.

Kentucky Airport Named Third-Party Defendant in Comair Lawsuit

Comair has named Lexington's Blue Grass International Airport as a third-party defendant in a lawsuit in Fayette Circuit Court.

American Airlines Sued After Body Found in Restroom

A federal lawsuit has been filed over the death of a man whose body was discovered in a restroom aboard an American Airlines plane.

Settlement Reached in Comair Lawsuit

A lawsuit filed on behalf of the estate of two of the victims of a deadly plane crash in Kentucky has been settled.

NTSB Report on North Carolina Crash Points Finger at Pilot

The federal agency charged with investigating air disasters says an October plane crash near Statesville that killed two people was probably due to pilot error.

Comair Files Suit against FAA over Kentucky Crash

Comair, a subsidiary of Delta Air Lines Inc., claims negligence on the part of the Federal Aviation Administration played a part in the 2006 crash of Flight 5191 shortly after takeoff.

Testimony Continues in Lawsuit over Fatal Illinois Plane Crash

In the federal trial over lawsuits resulting from the February 2000 multi-plane crash that killed Chicago radio host Bob Collins, recent testimony focused on what Collins may have seen just prior to the accident.

NBC Sports Executive Questions U.S. Charter Flight Oversight in Lawsuit

Dick Ebersol and his wife, actress Susan St. James, say passengers paying a premium for charter air travel may unknowingly be traveling on a flight without direct oversight by the government.

Search Continues for Indonesian Plane Crash Victims

The search continues for passengers who boarded the Adam Air Boeing 737-400 on Jan. 1, headed for Manado on Sulawesi Island, Indonesia. After two distress signals were issued from the plane, communications were lost and the plane went missing.

NTSB Issues Recommendations after Crash of Comair Flight

The National Transportation Safety Board says pilots should be required to follow specific procedures to ensure their aircraft is departing from the correct runway.

Former Aviation Company Employees File Whistleblower Suit

The former president and former chief inspector of Express.Net have filed a whistleblower suit containing more than 20 allegations of safety and TSA violations.

British Airways Grounds Three Planes after Possible Radioactive Contamination

Low traces of radiation have been found on two British Airways jetliners, and a third is being tested following the suspicious death of a former Russian spy.

36 Dead After Plane Crash in Iran

30 members of the Revolutionary Guards, an elite unit of the Iranian military, were killed along with six crew members when their plane crashed at an airport in Tehran Monday.

Second Suit Filed over Brazil Plane Crash

A United States law firm has filed a suit alleging pilot negligence and defectively designed equipment contributed to the September crash of a Gol Airlines flight in the jungles of Brazil.

NTSB Says Wind Contributed to Cory Lidle’s Plane Crash

The National Transportation Safety Board has cited a light wind as a contributing factor in the crash of a small plane carrying Yankees pitcher Cory Lidle last month.

Comair Suing FAA, Kentucky Airport

Delta Airlines subsidiary Comair has filed suit against Bluegrass Airport in Lexington, Kentucky, and the Federal Aviation Administration after the crash in August that killed 49 people.

$2.5 Million Settlement Reached with Plane Crash Victim's Family

A lawsuit filed by the family of a man killed in a plane crash in Jacksonville, Florida, has been settled for $2.5 million.

U.S. Air Defense Mobilized after New York Plane Crash

U.S. fighter jets blanketed American cities within 40 minutes after a small plane crashed into an Upper Manhattan apartment building Wednesday.

Fourth Suit Filed over Missouri Skydiving Plane Crash

One of two survivors of a skydiving plane crash that killed six people in eastern Missouri is filing suit against the company that made the plane's engine.

Aircraft Slams into New York City High-Rise

The latest reports out of Manhattan say an aircraft, either a small plane or a helicopter, has crashed into a residential building on the Upper East Side in New York.

U.S. Pilots under Investigation after Deadly Brazilian Airliner Collision

Two American pilots are being questioned in the investigation of a Brazilian airliner crash that killed 155 people.

Turkish Airliner Hijacking Ends Peacefully

All passengers and crew are safe after a lone hijacker aboard a jetliner bound from Albania to Istanbul surrendered today.

TSA Announces Partial Lift of Recent Liquids Ban

Restrictions on certain liquids, gels, aerosols, and other toiletries that passengers may bring onto airplanes are slowly being eased.

No Signs of Drugs or Alcohol Found in Comair Pilots

The National Transportation Safety Board says neither of the pilots in command of Comair Flight 5191 was found to have traces of illegal drugs or alcohol in his blood at the time the plane crashed into a Lexington, Kentucky, field last month.

Comair Crash Lawsuit Filed

The family of a Canadian woman who perished in last month's crash of Comair Flight 5191 in Kentucky is filing a lawsuit against the airline.

United, American Airlines Settle in Price Collusion Suit

The two largest U.S. airlines say that pending court approval, they will have to pay nothing after settling their part with most of the plaintiffs in a multimillion dollar class-action lawsuit.

Outdated Runway Charts Used at Time of Kentucky Plane Crash

An internal airline memo has revealed that Comair Airlines was utilizing inaccurate diagrams of Lexington, Kentucky’s Blue Grass Airport at the time Flight 5191 crashed, killing 49 of the 50 people on board.

3 Americans Die in Mexico Plane Crash

Three American medical volunteers are dead after a plane crash near Tijuana.

US Government to Pay $3.4 Million over Fatal Plane Crash

The federal government will pay $3.4 million to the parents of a 20-year-old Spokane, Washington, man, two years after a plane crash took his life, along with the life of another student pilot.

Legal Experts Say Lawsuits against Comair Sure to Come

The crash of Comair Flight 5191 in Lexington, Kentucky, last Sunday has some in the legal community saying it is nearly certain that Delta, the airline’s parent company, will be sued.

Flight 5191 Data and Voice Recordings Deepen Mystery

Tower tapes confirm that the pilot and a controller planned for the plane to take off from the correct runway.

Plane Crash Kills 49 in Lexington, Kentucky

On Sunday, a commuter jet that tried to take off from a short runway crashed into a nearby field, catching fire. A co-pilot was the only survivor and is currently hospitalized in critical condition.

Terrorist Plot Foiled

British authorities arrested 24 suspects in connection with a plot to smuggle liquid explosives onto a London flight. The suspects were taken into custody just before their “dry run" could be executed.

Parents of Skydiving Plane Crash Victim Seek Damages

The parents of a 22-year-old woman who died in a skydiving plane that crashed shortly after taking off from an airport in Sullivan, Mo., on Saturday have filed a wrongful death lawsuit seeking unspecified damages.

New GPS Accuracy: The Real Story

On May 1st, the White House announced that the GPS (Global Positioning System), which uses satellite transmissions to pinpoint the location of vehicles and people, would become twice as accurate for private citizens.

U.S. Airways pilots lose appeal over pension benefits

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has instructed a lower level federal court to dismiss a lawsuit filed by U.S. Airways pilots against the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp.

Alaska midair collision kills five

Five people were killed, including two accomplished pilots, in a midair collision over the Palmer Hay Flats State Game Refuge, about 20 miles northeast of Anchorage.

Renowned test pilot dies in plane crash

Officials have confirmed that the body of 84-year-old Scott Crossfield, a well-known test pilot, was discovered in the wreckage of a plane crash near Ranger, Ga.

Survivors of military cargo plane crash say engine failed

Passengers of a military cargo jet that crashed after its takeoff from Dover Air Force Base say that the aircraft's engines lost power.