Jacksonville Personal Injury Blog

As if the morning rush hour isn’t bad enough, commuters had to dodge a twin-engine aircraft as it made an emergency landing along Interstate 10 on Tuesday, August 31, around 8:15 a.m. Traffic snarled for hours after commuters dodged the plane on the crowded highway, according to an article on News4Jax.com. The pilot and his passenger walked away from the crash landing while a small amount of fuel leaked from the plane.

The problem with the 1957 Aero Commander plane began earlier that morning after it took off from Herlong. Soon afterward, the pilot reported losing one engine. He tried to return to the airport when the other engine went out. At that point, pilot William Montgomery, 47, of Jacksonville, was forced into an emergency landing on the westbound lanes of I-10 at mile marker 353, which is near the large Publix warehouse.

Upon landing the plane’s right wing hit several trees and sheared off. Neither the pilot nor passenger, 27-year-old Kacper Gradzki of Orange Park, was injured.

The plane was on its way to Craig Airport for radio maintenance when it went down. The National Transportation Safety Board is sending inspectors to Jacksonville to determine what went wrong.

Amazingly, the pilot managed to avoid hitting power lines and rear-ending any cars on crowded I-10. All that happened was that commuter rubberneckers jammed traffic as they slowed down to see the plane crashed on the side of the highway.

Jacksonville aviation accident attorneys are thankful that nobody was injured as airplane crashes usually have a much more tragic outcome.

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The air traffic controllers who direct all flight in the Washington region have been overseeing a record number of dangerous misses. So after 22 close calls, a team from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on Wednesday, July 7, began reviewing procedures at the towers at airports in the region.

The Washington Post has been leading the coverage of problems in the Washington region, the third busiest airspace after New York and Los Angeles. In one instance on June 28, a 120-seat United Airlines Airbus 319 from Chicago, being guided to land at Reagan National, narrowly missed a 22-seat Gulfstream.

When the United pilot’s warning collision-avoidance systems sounded, he pulled up hard and saw the Gulfstream pass behind him. The FAA requires a distance of three miles or 1,000 feet in altitude between aircraft.

Among the other close calls – a Continental 737 came within 3,900 feet of a military plane from Andrews Air Force Base; an 80-passenger shuttle was turned into the path of a commuter jet at National; and a Beechcraft charter jet nearly collided with a 150-passenger JetBlue Airways Airbus that was directed in front of it at Dulles.

What’s happening? The FAA believes that a new reporting procedure that relaxes punitive action and encourages controllers to report mistakes might be to blame. Still, the FAA is panicked enough to plan a top safety meeting in Washington, August 17, to address aircraft safety problems to make sure all procedures are being followed. Jacksonville aviation attorneys hope for a successful meeting and that all problems with the current procedures are remedied.

It’s also possible that the air traffic controllers who were hired in 1981 when President Ronald Reagan fired all of the controllers in a strike, are now retiring and new and inexperienced recruits are being trained to replace them.

Nationwide, there were 949 near misses last year in the Washington region. Last year there were 18 problems reported in the Washington region for the entire year.

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It’s been one year since an experimental plane crash in Marion County that killed the pilot. On March 6, 2009, the crash occurred in an RV park just off CR 25 in Ocala, according to an Orlando Sentinel article. An 80-year-old pilot was flying the experimental, amateur-built Stewart S51 plane, which was a 2/3 scale replica of a p-51 Mustang fighter. The National Transportation Safety Board report says that the pilot told his wife the test flight was “beautiful.” Witnesses reported they heard the engine sputtering before the plane crashed between two unoccupied RVs and then burst into flames. Our hearts go out to the wife of this adventurous man who lived life to the fullest.

The nine-page NTSB report does not indicate an actual cause of the crash. It includes four pages of flight history, personal information, weather reports, and notes from several witnesses who heard the engine sputter. The man was in the air for 0.3 hours. He was certified with a multi-engine rating and was a certified flight instructor and had nearly 14,000 hours of flight experience. He was the third owner of the experimental plane. The previous two owners never finished assembling the aircraft. The pilot was described as meticulous. He had purchased the airplane six years before the crash.

Plane accidents in Florida and throughout the nation are often devastating, leaving no survivors. If a person makes it through an aviation crash, injuries sustained are often catastrophic and present life-altering consequences for an injury victim and his or her family to cope with.

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A single-engine two-seat plane crashed Friday April 16 in Alachua County, Florida resulting in “massive injuries” to the pilot. The crash occurred between Archer and Newberry and the 73-year-old pilot was reported to be alone, according to The Gainesville Sun. The crashed happened around 5 p.m. near the Flying Ten Airstrip in a pasture, which is also known as “Kitty Hawk.” The pilot was airlifted to Shands Hospital in Gainesville, and at this time there are no additional details available. The Flying Ten is a grass airstrip between Archer and Jonesville, Florida.

Our prayers go out to the family of this pilot for his survival.

Aviation Accidents in Florida
The National Transportation Safety board is current investigating ten small plane accidents in Florida that involved 11 fatalities. The NTSB compiles statistics on airplane crashes in each of America's 50 states. Florida leads the southeast region with 35 percent of total accidents.

Plane Accident Investigation
Only the National Transportation Safety Board can say what caused this crash. An investigation is based on witness accounts, a review of the site and of the plane. An extensive investigation can include representatives from the aircraft manufacturer, engine manufacturer and sometimes even the parts manufacturers as standard procedure. An investigation would have to include determining the altitude that this pilot was flying, and whether or not he was in a turn? Did the engine appear to stall? A Florida accident attorney and investigator need to be on the scene immediately to make sure that evidence is preserved, that the proper procedures are followed and the manufacturer input does not unduly influence the outcome of the investigation.

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Pilot error is blamed for last year’s deadly crash near Buffalo, New York, that killed 50 people onboard and one person on the ground. The head of the National Transportation Safety Board says the pilots’ errors show “complacency and confusion that resulted in catastrophe.”

The Continental Connection Flight 3407 was the subject of a NTSB report issued Tuesday, February 2. Unfortunately the events are something we have seen before.

Safety Issues Raised
The safety issues raised by the Buffalo accident are reported industry-wide and point out the gap between the safety of major carriers and regional ones.

Five of the six major crashes involving air travel have occurred among regional airlines since January 2001, reports the NTSB.

At the regional airports, increasingly used to fill the gaps, lower-paid pilots who must commute long distances to work often fly tired as was the case here. Capt. Martin Renfro was coming in from Florida to Newark and his co-pilot flew in the night before from Seattle, where she lived with her parents. She made less than $20,000 a year and was flying fatigued and sick.

Flight 3407 stalled on approach to the Buffalo airport, and in response to the automatic stall warning, the pilot pulled back on the controls instead of pushing them forward to gain speed. Then he pulled back three more times. The NTSB said it was at a loss to explain that action.
Safety Recommendations

In its report the NTSB Office of Aviation Safety issued 25 recommendations.

Continue reading "Pilot Error Blamed For Buffalo Crash That Killed 51" »

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A father and son were both injured in their 1974 experimental plane that took off from Williston Florida, Sunday, February 21. The 65-year-old father and his son 40-year-old son had taken off successfully, but when they were returning to the Williston Airport Sunday morning, the plane took a nose dive, landing upside down. Both men were taken to Shands Hospital but reported to be in stable condition. According to the Levy County Sheriff’s department, the two had taken off for a Sunday morning flight in their home- built plane.

Thankfully, this plane crash did not result in deadly consequences. These two men are counting their blessings, I’m sure.

Accident Statistics
There has been a 600 percent increase in the number of homebuilt airplanes since the 1970s, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. They are much less expensive than single-engine general aviation aircraft. But the FAA allows anybody to buy the plans and assemble the parts for an aircraft. There are at least 25,000 experimental aircraft homebuilt in the U.S. though many are based on conventional design. This aircraft can be built and flown by any licensed pilot and the aircraft must be certified for flight by an examiner.

Liability Issues
Experimental aircraft can raise serious liability concerns. Small experimental aircraft don’t have the same FAA requirements as factory-built aircraft and the homemade planes are more dangerous as a result. People literally can build them in their garage. Experimental aircraft can use automotive or motorcycle engines.

Continue reading "Williston, Fl Plane Crash Injures Two" »

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When private plane pilot, Gary Tillman of Rome, Georgia decided to leave for a pre-Christmas holiday in the Bahamas, he didn’t know his engine would quit. Tillman had just left from the Craig Airfield in Jacksonville in December 2005. On board were his daughter Hannah, and her friends, Anna Kipp, and Rachael Hostetler, according to an article.

Not long after takeoff, an engine quit.

Tillman asked air traffic controllers for help in making an emergency beach landing nearby as he was about one mile off Vilano Beach, just north of St. Augustine. But he followed the FAA directions to travel south to the St. Augustine Airport, a few miles south.

The Federal Aviation Administration has agreed to pay $3.75 million for failing to help the pilot make the emergency landing. Instead, Tillman, his daughter, Hannah, and her friend Anna Kipp died in the Atlantic off Vilano Beach when they couldn’t make it safely to the airport. Tillman told the FAA after the instructions, “We’re not going to make it,” just before he crashed.

The other teen, Rachel Hostetler, was pulled from the water and was the only one to survive the crash.

Out condolences go out to all of the family members of those lost in this crash, which could have been prevented if Tillman been directed to the beach instead of south.

As attorney Woody Wilner told the jury, the air traffic controllers were at fault for the Florida wrongful death accident because Tillman had requested a beach landing.

“He had one request. You know where I am, you have radar, I don’t,” Wilner said. Instead, the controllers sent him over water.

The FAA is the authority, empowered by Congress, to promote aviation safety and the public. What happened here indicates they did not act fast enough in ascertaining the seriousness of the situation to save these three precious lives. Also indicative was that the controllers were slow in notifying the U.S. Coast Guard to the scene after the crash.

The FAA did not admit any fault in the accident.

At Farah and Farah, our experienced Florida aviation accident lawyers understand the pain, stress and confusion that families must endure when a plane crash takes the life of a loved one. For those who are lucky enough to survive an aviation accident, very often steep hospital bills await them for treating serious injuries. With our knowledge of air transportation laws, we will begin an investigation into your accident immediately to get you and your family the compensation you deserve. Call Farah and Farah today for a free consultation at 800-533-3555.

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“Brace For Impact,” are the last words you want to hear when you are on an airplane.

But that is exactly what was said to the 148 passengers on board a US Airways A320 airbus leaving New York’s LaGuardia Airport Thursday. The plane made a remarkable landing on water and amazingly everyone got out with only a few broken limbs and hypothermia.

So it might be a good time to review what you would do if you heard those words.

“Ditching” is what a water landing is called. On Friday, CBS News reported a visit with a flight training center that trains people on what to do during a ditching.

The first thing to know is that crew is trained to do more than bring you coffee- they are trained to keep you alive. And the plane is made to withstand the impact of a water landing.

Secondly – remain calm and listen to the crew’s words exactly. When the flight attendant tells you to put on your seat belt and life jacket, do so, but please do not inflate the vest inside the plane.

Continue reading "What You Need To Know If You're In A Plane Accident" »

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