Family sues American in Queens plane crash
Airline accused of improperly training pilots on use of rudders
By TERRY MAXON
Staff Writer
The Dallas Morning News
The family of a woman and son killed in a November airplane crash in Queens, N.Y., have filed suit Thursday alleging that American Airlines, Inc. improperly trained its pilots on use of airplane rudders.
The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Dallas, also accused American of not properly inspecting and maintaining the airplane involved, an Airbus A300.
An American spokesman declined to comment on the suit.
American's Flight 587 crashed Nov. 12 into a Queens neighborhood, less than two minutes after taking off from John F. Kennedy International Airport on a trip to the Dominican Republic. The accident killed all 260 people aboard the plane and five on the ground.
The National Transportation Safety Board has not determined a cause, but the investigation is focusing on why the aircraft's vertical stabilizer, made of composite materials, broke off shortly after takeoff.
The husband, parents and children of Renya Brito Prospero, 49, filed one lawsuit.
The husband, Wigberto Prospero of New York, also filed a suit as adoptive father of Wilberto Pablo Brito, 9, who died along with Ms. Prospero, his adoptive mother.
The suit alleges that American's 'Advanced Aircraft Training Program' for pilots emphasized the heavy use of the rudder to recover from turbulence and other upsets. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) criticized that emphasis on rudders, which are moved by cockpit foot pedals.
The suit also said American had been warned before the crash 'that its pilots were utilizing the rudder in a manner that could structurally compromise the aircraft.'
Investigators said the American jet had encountered wake turbulence, and the suit claimed that data from the crashed airplane 'indicate that the flight crew made excessive rudder inputs.'
The suit, filed by Dallas law firm Heygood, Orr, Reyes, Pearson & Bartolomei and Austin lawyer Michael L. Slack, did not specify the amount of damages the plaintiffs are seeking.
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By TERRY MAXON
Staff Writer
The Dallas Morning News
The family of a woman and son killed in a November airplane crash in Queens, N.Y., have filed suit Thursday alleging that American Airlines, Inc. improperly trained its pilots on use of airplane rudders.
The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Dallas, also accused American of not properly inspecting and maintaining the airplane involved, an Airbus A300.
An American spokesman declined to comment on the suit.
American's Flight 587 crashed Nov. 12 into a Queens neighborhood, less than two minutes after taking off from John F. Kennedy International Airport on a trip to the Dominican Republic. The accident killed all 260 people aboard the plane and five on the ground.
The National Transportation Safety Board has not determined a cause, but the investigation is focusing on why the aircraft's vertical stabilizer, made of composite materials, broke off shortly after takeoff.
The husband, parents and children of Renya Brito Prospero, 49, filed one lawsuit.
The husband, Wigberto Prospero of New York, also filed a suit as adoptive father of Wilberto Pablo Brito, 9, who died along with Ms. Prospero, his adoptive mother.
The suit alleges that American's 'Advanced Aircraft Training Program' for pilots emphasized the heavy use of the rudder to recover from turbulence and other upsets. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) criticized that emphasis on rudders, which are moved by cockpit foot pedals.
The suit also said American had been warned before the crash 'that its pilots were utilizing the rudder in a manner that could structurally compromise the aircraft.'
Investigators said the American jet had encountered wake turbulence, and the suit claimed that data from the crashed airplane 'indicate that the flight crew made excessive rudder inputs.'
The suit, filed by Dallas law firm Heygood, Orr, Reyes, Pearson & Bartolomei and Austin lawyer Michael L. Slack, did not specify the amount of damages the plaintiffs are seeking.
<< BACK TO PERSONAL INJURY ARCHIVE