Buffalo Plane Crash Victims Include Passengers, Crew and One on Ground
Continental Connection/Colgan Air Flight 3407 Victims
February 12, 2009
A Continental Connection flight operating as Colgan Air Flight 3407 crashed directly into a home in the Clarence suburb of Buffalo, New York, at approximately 10:20 p.m. on February 12, 2009. Flight 3407 victims include all 49 passengers and crew aboard the flight and one individual on the ground. Air traffic control lost contact with Flight 3407 at approximately 10:15 p.m. when the plane fell off of the radar, just prior to its scheduled landing at Buffalo Niagara International Airport. There were no signs of distress in communications between air traffic control and the flight crew prior to the plane crash in Buffalo. The Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 aircraft was a 74-seat turbo prop engine plane.
The Investigation of the Flight 3407 Crash
Investigators have surmised that icing on the aircraft was likely a key contributing factor in the crash of Flight 3407 en route to Buffalo from Newark, New Jersey. Weather reports indicate icing conditions at the time of the crash, including a light mix of snow and sleet.
Though the causes of the crash of Buffalo plane crash remain undetermined until the NTSB releases the probable cause report, the details are strikingly similar to the fatal crash of another turbo prop plane, Comair Flight 3272, which occurred in Detroit, Michigan on January 9, 1997. The NTSB later identified the cause of the Comair Flight 3272 crash as a failure to meet operating standards in icing conditions.
To learn more about dangers of aircraft icing, read the FAA’s Safety Alert for Operators on In-Flight Icing, Turbo Propeller Powered Airplanes and the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) Air Safety Foundation’s Safety Advisor report on Aircraft Icing.
Colgan Air, Inc., a subsidiary of Pinnacle Airlines, operates under the Continental Connection, United Express and US Airways Express airline names. Motley Rice aviation attorneys have completed litigation against Colgan Air, Inc. and Pinnacle Airlines as well as the manufacturer Bombardier. After her tenure as Inspector General of the Department of Transportation, Motley Rice aviation attorney Mary Schiavo served as an expert witness in the crash of American Eagle Flight 4184, a twin turbo prop plane which crashed in similar conditions in Roselawn, Illinois, in October 1994. Additionally, Mary Schiavo wrote the introduction to In the Wake of the Storm, a book authored by the sister of a victim of Flight 4184 that addresses the aftermath of the airline disaster.
Contact Motley Rice Aviation Attorneys
The Motley Rice aviation team is reviewing the crash of Continental Airlines/Colgan Air Flight 3407 and the legal responsibility that Continental Airlines, Inc., Colgan Air, Inc., Pinnacle Airlines and aircraft manufacturer Bombardier may have to the families of Flight 3407 victims.
Motley Rice attorney Fidelma Fitzpatrick (NY, DC, MA, RI) and aviation attorney and former Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Transportation, Mary Schiavo (DC, MD, MO, SC) are leading the firm's review of the Buffalo plane crash. Fitzpatrick, a native of Buffalo, New York, represents families of plane crash victims in the TAM Airlines Flight 3054 crash case, litigating against multiple corporate defendants. She has also represented victims of childhood lead poisoning in the Buffalo area. Schiavo has represented victims of many major U.S. air crashes, including passengers, pilots, and flight attendants. Her experience with major, complex aviation litigation includes more handing than 50 cases on behalf of the family members of the passengers and crew of all the planes hijacked on September 11, 2001.If you or someone you know is interested in seeking legal recourse due to wrongful death or personal injury as a result of the crash of Flight 3407, please contact attorney Fidelma Fitzpatrick (NY, DC, MA, RI) or aviation attorney and former Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Transportation, Mary Schiavo (DC, MD, MO, SC) at (843) 216-9000 or toll free at 1-800-768-4026.
Calling for Aviation Safety Changes
On February 24, 2009, Motley Rice, representing Gail Dunham, the Executive Director of the National Air Disaster Alliance/Foundation (NADA/F) in her personal capacity, filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Transporation (DOT) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to compel an end to 15-year delays on regulatory changes as recommended by the NTSB. The lawsuit targets neglected action items from the NTSB regarding runway safety as well as flight in icing conditions under investigation in the Flight 3407 crash.
Several of the NTSB’s safety improvement recommendations for flight in icing conditions have been outstanding with an insufficient response from the FAA since 1996. If these recommendations had been implemented, we believe, it is quite possible that the plane crash in Buffalo, New York, could have be prevented. Dunham, as a frequent traveler and executive director of NADA/F, brought her suit in an effort to help safeguard the flying public and compel action on pending safety measures. Dunham’s demands are summarized as a call for the FAA and the DOT to perform the responsibilities outlined for the agencies under federal mandates.