'06 Comair Crash - 1 pax fam receives 7.1m award!

[bri5150]

Any number of things could have prevented the accident in LEX. One of them is having crewmembers who are not distracted by economic pressures placed upon them by their employer. Pilots who are adequately compensated, with a reasonably secure future employment outlook, have no need to discuss other job opportunities.

While I think that safety does take an unintentional hit when company morale is bad, I am going to call BS on this statement. If they were talking about Eminem winning best rap artist last night at the Grammy's, are you going to blame the rapper for the accident? The pilots f'ed up. I could happen to any of us. It's as simple as that.

 

[rickair7777]

"$2 million for loss of affection and companionship"
WTF????//////

The standard in the legal industry is that anyone is worth $1M dead.

Add to that career earning potential for a young person who has a good job or good career prospects, plus some simmering jury anger at the gross negligence portrayed on the CVR and $2M is easily attainable.

Also the family members may not have been acting out of greed...they might have just vengeance on DL/CA.

 

[Oakum_Boy]

While I think that safety does take an unintentional hit when company morale is bad, I am going to call BS on this statement. If they were talking about Eminem winning best rap artist last night at the Grammy's, are you going to blame the rapper for the accident? The pilots f'ed up. I could happen to any of us. It's as simple as that.

But they weren't talking about eminem. They were talking about getting out of that dump. Just like Colgan pilots talking about their overnight commute and lack of sleep on the broken recliner all while being physically ill. Problem is that these places- and they're mostly alike- are dead-end jobs. Dead-end jobs don't attract people who really care, nor do they foster professionalism.

Regionals can spend millions on safety programs and training ( but mostly they will do the bare minimum) but if you can't attract and retain talent, these things will continue to happen. Sorry.

Some regionals are better than others. Comair was better than most, but if the strings are too tight, wrecks will happen. Sorry again. You have to look at the bigger picture here.

 

[CRJ puppy]

Agreed

 

[V-1]

While I think that safety does take an unintentional hit when company morale is bad, I am going to call BS on this statement. If they were talking about Eminem winning best rap artist last night at the Grammy's, are you going to blame the rapper for the accident? The pilots f'ed up. I could happen to any of us. It's as simple as that.

The pilots made an error. There were a number of factors that made that error easier to make than it should have been.

Managing distractions is something we all do on a daily basis. At some point every single one of us will reach a point where we cannot keep up with all the distractions, and one of the balls we're juggling will get dropped.

Hearing one's employer say that without yet another round of concessions the company will likely cease to exist can be a pretty big distraction for pilots who are already economically stressed.

Personally I know there's a pretty small chance I'd be discussing what Lady Gag wore at the Grammy's on the flight deck - but if I'd just heard my paycheck and my family's economic security was being threatened by my employer AGAIN....there is an increased likelihood I'm going to want to discuss options for mitigating the threat. Analyzing risk and planning strategies to reduce that risk is what good pilots do.

The situation is not unique to Comair, and I'm not writing the crew performed as well as they could have. Perhaps if they'd had a substantial amount of savings, or easily transferable skills that would not guarantee them a substantial cut in pay and quality of life, the crew wouldn't have been distracted by the very recent announcement that their jobs were at risk. Perhaps they'd have been discussing Eminem. It's just as likely they'd have been discussing nothing beyond what was required to do their job.

I don't want my attorney, doctor, accountant, or pilot wondering how they're going to pay their bills next month when they're working for me. Perhaps some of us think this is acceptable. We are, after all, an "everything for nothing is my constitutional right" Wal-Mart society. We feel like we've been ripped off if we leave a gas station after buying ten gallons of gas, then see a station just down the street that was a penny a gallon cheaper. Never mind that we've got six dollars worth of change rattling around on the floor underneath our seat.

The sad thing is, nothing has changed. Forty-nine people died, and we're still dealing with the same safety-compromising airline industry management.

Shame on the NTSB for taking the easy way out and blaming the dead instead of highlighting the numerous issues that contributed to the tragedy in LEX.

 

[SBD]

The pilots made an error. There were a number of factors that made that error easier to make than it should have been.

Managing distractions is something we all do on a daily basis. At some point every single one of us will reach a point where we cannot keep up with all the distractions, and one of the balls we're juggling will get dropped.

Hearing one's employer say that without yet another round of concessions the company will likely cease to exist can be a pretty big distraction for pilots who are already economically stressed.

Personally I know there's a pretty small chance I'd be discussing what Lady Gag wore at the Grammy's on the flight deck - but if I'd just heard my paycheck and my family's economic security was being threatened by my employer AGAIN....there is an increased likelihood I'm going to want to discuss options for mitigating the threat. Analyzing risk and planning strategies to reduce that risk is what good pilots do.

The situation is not unique to Comair, and I'm not writing the crew performed as well as they could have. Perhaps if they'd had a substantial amount of savings, or easily transferable skills that would not guarantee them a substantial cut in pay and quality of life, the crew wouldn't have been distracted by the very recent announcement that their jobs were at risk. Perhaps they'd have been discussing Eminem. It's just as likely they'd have been discussing nothing beyond what was required to do their job.

I don't want my attorney, doctor, accountant, or pilot wondering how they're going to pay their bills next month when they're working for me. Perhaps some of us think this is acceptable. We are, after all, an "everything for nothing is my constitutional right" Wal-Mart society. We feel like we've been ripped off if we leave a gas station after buying ten gallons of gas, then see a station just down the street that was a penny a gallon cheaper. Never mind that we've got six dollars worth of change rattling around on the floor underneath our seat.

The sad thing is, nothing has changed. Forty-nine people died, and we're still dealing with the same safety-compromising airline industry management.

Shame on the NTSB for taking the easy way out and blaming the dead instead of highlighting the numerous issues that contributed to the tragedy in LEX.

Word to the Mutha!

 

[imacdog]

If I remember right this accident took place only a few weeks after Delta announced an RFP, with much of the flying targeted at replacing Comair. It was a very stressful time to be flying there, if you were the type to worry about little things like steady employment and putting food on the table.

 

[kmox29]

The pilots made an error. There were a number of factors that made that error easier to make than it should have been...Shame on the NTSB for taking the easy way out and blaming the dead instead of highlighting the numerous issues that contributed to the tragedy in LEX.

Your first statement is 100% true. The second one is not. Read the conclusions from the official report. While the pilots ultimately took the 'Probable Cause' blame (as they should have in this accident), the NTSB highlighted 28 'Conclusions' which placed 'Findings' on the FAA, ATC, and Airport Construction.

 

[Ad Lib]

If I remember right this accident took place only a few weeks after Delta announced an RFP, with much of the flying targeted at replacing Comair. It was a very stressful time to be flying there, if you were the type to worry about little things like steady employment and putting food on the table.

If memory serves correctly, the RFP announcement was on Thursday. Comair was told if they did not accept concessions, they could lose all their flying. The accident happened the following Sunday.

That having been said, may airlines have endured bankruptcy and cessation of operations. Our Profession requires discipline.

 

[johnpeace]

ASA is now needlessly saddling it's crews with the stress and tension of declining QOL and more work for less money.

It's a situation ripe for disaster.

Stay extremely safe and vigilant everyone!