Aviation Accidents

National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators recently finished looking into a fiery aviation accident that killed four people in November 2010. In their report, the NTSB cited errors made by the pilot and a certified flight instructor that led to the crash at Palm Beach International Airport. The NTSB report stated that the Piper PA-44 Seminole bound for Melbourne from the Bahamas crashed nose first into the runway right after takeoff around 6:05 p.m. on November 11, 2010 and subsequently caught fire, killing all four people aboard. All the victims were either employed by or attended the Florida Institute of Technology’s FIT Aviation School near Melbourne.

The report said that the crash was caused by "the failure of both the pilot and the certified flight instructor to ensure that the left fuel selector was in the on position for takeoff" and "their failure to follow the proper procedures when the left engine lost power shortly after takeoff."

The NTSB determined that these two errors led to engine failure and the inability to control the aircraft. Pre-flight checklists require that both fuel selectors be switched on during takeoff. The accident investigation revealed that the left fuel selection lever and the fuel selector valve were both in the off position when the plane took flight that day. If proper preflight protocols are observed, the aircraft’s fuel selector is supposed to be switched from the on position to the crossfeed position while the aircraft is taxiing. Just before takeoff, the checklist states that the pilot is supposed to move the fuel selector from the crossfeed position to the on position.

Shortly after takeoff, the pilot radioed the air traffic control tower that her aircraft was experiencing engine failure and that she needed to turn around and land as quickly as possible. NTSB investigators found no evidence of mechanical malfunction or failure during their investigation.

We tend to take air travel for granted these days, and safety protocols like the checklists mentioned above as well as proper aircraft maintenance schedules and other safety measures help ensure that air travel is safe. However, not all aircraft owners place passenger safety above all other concerns and sometimes cut corners to save money. That does not appear to be the case in this unfortunate accident, but it does happen, and when it does, victims and their families deserve effective and experienced legal representation. If you or a close family member has been injured in an aviation accident and you would like to learn more about your legal options, call Orlando aviation accident attorney James O. Cunningham today at 888-425-2004 or 407-425-2000. Mr. Cunningham has been using his skills and experience as an Orlando personal injury lawyer to help injured people since 1977 and works hard to ensure that his clients receive the fair and just compensation they deserve.

A couple from Melbourne has died from injuries suffered in a plane crash on the afternoon of July 23. Accident investigators say the couple and a 20-year-old passenger were flying in a Cirrus single-engine aircraft owned by the pilot and his wife. The plane went down in an undeveloped region of southwestern Palm Bay known as the “The Compound.” The 65-year-old pilot and his 50-year-old wife were taken to Holmes Regional Medical Center in Melbourne after the 12:30 p.m. crash but died from their injuries some hours later.
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A Delta Airlines flight from Orlando International Airport to Washington D.C. on the morning of May 6 was forced to return to Orlando after crew and passengers smelled smoke from what was eventually traced to an electrical short. Passengers and crew members began smelling smoke shortly after the MD-88 took off from OIA, and when they could not find the source, they turned around and landed safely. The flight took off on schedule at 10:55 a.m. and landed without incident at 11:19 a.m.
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Officials are still investigating the crash of a small aircraft that killed both people aboard the airplane, killed three people on the ground, destroyed two homes and damaged another in Sanford. One of the victims on the plane was the husband of the Vice President of NASCAR, and the pilot was a prominent Ormond Beach plastic surgeon. Accident investigators say the Cessna 310 went down around 8:40 a.m. striking one home, causing the home next door to catch fire and damaging a third home. Both homes struck by the aircraft were destroyed in the crash, and three of the victims, two of them children, were occupants of the homes.
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Two people died recently in an Orlando-area plane accident when their aircraft crashed in Kissimmee on February 2. The Federal Aviation Administration reported that the plane crashed while on approach to land at Kissimmee Gateway Airport. A FAA spokesman said that the aircraft crashed on a nearby softball diamond and broke into several pieces, fatally injuring the pilot and his passenger. The airplane accident injured no one on the ground, and local officials reported that the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is also investigating the crash.
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Three people are counting their blessings after their aircraft crash-landed onto State Road 40 recently. According to reports, the three walked away from the airplane accident with minor injuries when their single-engine Luscombe aircraft had to make an emergency landing on the afternoon of June 25. The 36-year-old pilot and his two passengers were returning to Sanford from a visit to Cedar Key when the aircraft began having engine problems. The pilot made an emergency landing in a field next to S.R. 40.
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A 45-year-old woman and her three children who died when their aircraft crashed into Lake Russell. The children, aged 19, 18 and 16, and their mother had just taken off from Walt Disney World on their way to Fort Lauderdale when the aviation accident occurred. The light aircraft they were traveling in was reportedly being piloted by the woman’s 19-year-old son when the accident occurred.

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