Wing Cracks in Airbus Aircrafts Discovered

According to reports, European safety authority EASA is preparing to order airlines to administer checks on nearly a third of all Airbus A380s in service after cracks in the aircrafts' wings were discovered.

The order for inspection will reportedly be given through an EASA directive.  The directive is reported to focus on two different categories of the superjumbo aircraft, those that have completed 1,800 take-offs and landings and those that have completed 1,300-1,799 take-offs and landings.  The inspections in the 1,800 category are reportedly required to begin within days while aircraft in the other category reportedly will be checked within six weeks.
Reuters has reported that no aircraft will be grounded pending the checks.  There are a total of 68 of the 525-seat aircraft in service, according to media reports.

The A380 reportedly began service in December, 2007, with Singapore Airlines, followed by Emirates and Australia's Qantas.  Other carriers reportedly include Air France, Korean Air, Lufthansa and China Southern.

Atlasjet Airlines Flight 4203 Crash Decision Keeps Case in Chicago

A recent Illinois Appellate decision highlights and reinforces the weight given to the Plaintiff’s forum preference in the analysis to resolve a motion to dismiss on forum non conveniens grounds.

The case stems from consolidated wrongful death, product liability and negligence actions filed in the wake of an airplane crash in Turkey.  Suit was brought in Chicago by Plaintiffs representing 32 of the 57 decedents from the crash.  Defendants in the case are the designer and manufacturer of the airplane, The Boeing Company (Boeing) and McDonnell Douglas Corporation (McDonnell) and the designer/manufacturer of the airplane’s enhanced  ground proximity warning system (warning system) Honeywell International Inc. (Honeywell).

After initially denying the defendants’ petition for leave to appeal, the appellate court was issued a supervisory order by the Illinois Supreme Court ordering they grant the interlocutory appeal.

In a well-reasoned opinion, the appellate court affirmed the trial court’s order denying the defendants’ motion.

The defendants argued that the action should be brought in or alternatively argued that the action should be transferred to Washington state where Honeywell designed the warning system.

The case law in Illinois establishes the standard the defendants failed to meet here: the relevant factors for the analysis must strongly favor transfer.  “Generally, a plaintiff’s choice of forum will prevail if the venue is proper and the inconvenience factors attached to the chosen forum do not greatly outweigh the plaintiff’s substantial right to try the case in the chosen forum.”

The appellate court’s analysis appropriately and coherently evaluated the trial court’s consideration of the public and private interest factors.  The focus on private interest factors looked at the convenience of the parties, access to sources of evidence and other practical problems that influence the ease and efficiency of trial.

The forum was not demonstrated to be inconvenient because the defendants are American corporations, two of which are headquartered in Chicago along with all three attorneys’ offices. 

Access to evidence also did not require transfer because witnesses and evidence were widely dispersed and consequently did not favor one jurisdiction over another.  The Court also stated that while evidence of the crash and damages are in Turkey, this case is based in products liability and the evidence relative to design, manufacture and assembly is in the United States.

The Court’s analysis focused on the public interest factor: the interest in deciding controversies locally.  The Court reasoned that Americans have equal concern as the Turks in the safety of Boeing airplanes, but that “Americans also have an interest in the products that American corporations build and ship throughout the world.”  Moreover, the Court noted that the American authorities and defendants both participated in the investigation of the crash.  Based on their analysis, the factors did not weigh strongly in favor of transfer to Turkey.

The Court also found that the private interest factors did not support transfer to Washington state because, despite allegations that most of the documents and witnesses are located in that locale, no one forum is more convenient than another.

The whole order can be found here (PDF).

Aviation Consulting Firm Says 2011 was Safest year on Record for Airlines

2011 may end up as the safest year on record for aviation travelers.  That’s according to Ascend, an aviation industry consulting firm based in London, which reports one fatality for every 7.1 million passengers traveling on a commercial or charter flight somewhere around the world.

Paul Hayes, Ascend Director of Safety, told USA Today that, “Fortunately, the airlines are getting safer, quicker than they’re expanding.”  The report did not count deaths that resulted from terrorism or other acts of violence.

The previous record was one passenger death per 6.4 million fliers in 2004.

The most recent tragic crash of a commercial airliner was that of a Colgan Air turboprop that crashed near Buffalo, New York, in 2009, killing 50 people.  Clifford Law Offices represents a number of families who lost loved ones on that tragic flight.

Travel experts report that better technology and improved training of crews have helped make flying less hazardous as well as sharing information across the airline industry.  “With the increased amount of data and sharing of data, we can now anticipate potential risk areas better than we ever had before,” Steve Lott, Airlines for America Spokesman said.  He went on to say, that “it doesn’t mean we can take a break or rest on that strong record.”

                               

Another Tragic Small Plane Crash in Chicago Suburbs

Late Monday night, three people died when a small airplane transporting five people, including  a medical patient, to the Chicago area crashed in northwest suburban Riverwoods, according to reports.

The two who reportedly died were 80-year-old John Bialek of Streamwood, and his wife, Ilomae, 75.

The multi-engine Piper Navajo crashed in a wooded area close to Orange Brace and Portwine Roads, just north of a Lake County Forest Preserve around 10:50 p.m just after the pilot reported a fuel problem.

According to reports the flight carrying John Bialek, his wife, two pilots and a flight paramedic was destined for the Chicago Executive Airport in Wheeling.

The aircraft, which reportedly passed a safety inspection earlier that day, was bringing Bialek from West Palm Beach, Florida to the Chicago Executive.

On the scene authorities reportedly put out the small fire with a handheld fire extinguisher and extricated three survivors, according to Chief Fred Kruger, of the Lincolnshire-Riverwoods Fire Protection District.

After freeing them, one survivor later died who was taken to Advocate Lutheran General Medical Center in Park Ridge. The remaining two survivors were taken to Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville.

According to reports, investigators from the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board were heading to the scene.

Indiana Businessman Killed with His Two Daughters and One of Their Boyfriends on Return to Wheaton College

The single-engine plane that crashed near Crystal Lake Saturday is a tragic story of a terrible family loss on a holiday weekend.

The Chicago Sun-Times has reported that central Indiana businessman Ray Harris was killed as he flew his daughter back to Wheaton College in a Cirrus SR20 manufactured in 2000.

Also reported by the Sun-Times to be in the four-seater plane was Harris’ two daughters, Ramie and Shey, as well as one of the daughter’s boyfriends.  Ramie, 21, is reported to be a junior at Wheaton College.

National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators are on the scene trying to determine the cause of the crash that occurred Saturday, Nov. 26, at 10:30 a.m. near Highway 14 and North Ridgefield Road.  Authorities are reporting that crash debris was spread across a 100-yard area. 

NTSB authorities also are trying to determine if the pilot had any contact with air traffic controllers in Chicago. 

The Harris family is from Marion, Indiana, about 80 miles northeast of Indianapolis where reports are the community is devastated over the loss. 

Four People Killed in Crystal Lake Plane Crash

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is reporting that four people were killed this morning (11/26/2011) after a small plane crashed near the north suburb of Crystal Lake.

Officials said that the Cirrus aircraft crashed in a field about 10:30 a.m. in a farm field near U.S. Highway 14 north Ridgefield Road in unincorporated McHenry County.

None of the four people aboard have been identified, media reports indicate at this time.

The aircraft, a Cirrus-SR20, had a tail number of N223CD and was registered to the Marion Pilots Club Inc. in Marion, Indiana, the FAA reported to the media.

National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators are heading to the scene to investigate along with the FAA that is already there. FAA officials are investigating whether the rules of flight were followed and other important details regarding the aircraft and the pilot, according to the Chicago Tribune.

A spokesperson for the Crystal Lake Fire Rescue Department confirmed that no one on the ground was injured.

Small Plane Crash in Chicago Suburbs Kills One

In Chicago’s suburbs, a small plane crashed Sunday leaving one man dead.  According to reports, a plane crashed on take-off around 1:30 p.m. from Olson Airport in Elgin, Illinois.

Reports indicate that the pilot of that plane, 69-year-old Frank Kehoe of Hampshire, was the only person on board and was pronounced dead on the scene.

According to authorities, Kehoe was an experienced pilot.  Reports available at the time of this writing do not state Kehoe’s intended destination.

The Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) is investigating the cause of the crash, according to FAA spokesman Lynn Lunsford.

Clifford Law has Experienced Small Plane Crash Attorneys

Clifford Law Offices has experience with crashes involving small aircraft similar to the one that tragically crashed involving the deaths of coaches at Oklahoma State Women's Basketball. Richard F. Burke, partner at the firm, tried a case in May, 2002, involving a single engine Piper Cherokee PA 32-300 six-seater. Mr. Burke obtained a $6.8 million verdict as a result of the crash of that Piper aircraft that ran out of gas in northwest suburban Schaumburg that was recognized as the Verdict of the Week in the National Law Journal. The jury deliberated just three hours following a two-and-a-half week trial before delivering a verdict against the pilot and Northwest Flyers on behalf of a Plainfield woman who suffered severe injuries as a passenger on the aircraft on August 18, 1996.

During trial, Mr. Burke presented evidence that proved the plane burned fuel at a higher rate than it should have as well as pilot error in not monitoring the fuel consumption.