How is the FO doing?

[Dumb Pilot]

Can they actually sue him? I thought they'd have to go through the company?

It is scary what the legal system can do to you. Remember the shootout between the cops and those two bank robbers in LA? The families of the robbers sued some of the police officers involved and won the case. Financially devastating for the officers.
The legal system is so screwed up in this country that two border patrol officers find themselves in a shootout with foreign drug smugglers and the criminal gets immunity and the officers are charged with a crime.
Can they come after him? Regrettably, yes they can.

 

[stall022]

Once the lawyers get a hold of it they use scattergun lawsuits and sue everything and everyone. Hoping for out of court settlements from each of the companies and parties involved.

 

[COOPERVANE]

They will sue GE, Bombardier, Goodyear, Collins, Airport performance group, the FAA, Coca-Cola, Lance crackers, Biscoff, Fischer nuts, The seatbelt manufacturers, Flightsafety, ATP, and Comair. Did I miss any?

Bloodsuckers

 

[Floyd94]

Deleted

 

[PilotOnTheRise]

Assuming the FO is physically able, and ever wants to step foot into an airplane again, will he be allowed to fly again, or is his career over? I'm referring to, if this officially is labeled "pilot error", and considering everything else. Just curious as to whether he will still have a job at Comair, or in the airline industry again.

 

[scarlet]

The poset was started to try to figure out how he is doing???? not your opinion

 

[PCL_128]

To the best of my knowledge, there has never been a pilot successfully sued for an accident in the United States.

 

[Tram]

Just curious as to whether he will still have a job at Comair, or in the airline industry again.

It's pretty doubtful..

Be it.. pilot error.. or not.. They were still the ones behind the yoke when the plane got broken..

You bend a bird, at a big airline, you just bent your career..

 

[SkyBoy1981]

If it were me whether or not I could fly again would be the least of my concerns.

 

[Ralgha]

They will sue GE, Bombardier, Goodyear, Collins, Airport performance group, the FAA, Coca-Cola, Lance crackers, Biscoff, Fischer nuts, The seatbelt manufacturers, Flightsafety, ATP, and Comair. Did I miss any?

Bloodsuckers

Yeah, the city of Lexington, police and fire departments, and the ambulance company.

 

[PilotOnTheRise]

If it were me whether or not I could fly again would be the least of my concerns.

Definately! I was just curious as to what he will face from Comair, and the FAA, while we are discussing what he will face from the family and lawyers.

 

[Hulk Hogan]

I would think he is covered, and protected by the airline's insurance unless they can prove he committed some kind of neglegence prior to. And even if they can sue, why would they?

 

[cheyflyer]

With a little luck he wont remember anything. I think thats about the only way he will be able to survive should he survive.

cf.

 

[Ganja60Heavy]

Definately! I was just curious as to what he will face from Comair, and the FAA, while we are discussing what he will face from the family and lawyers.

Will he get an occurance?

 

[viking737]

Tram says:
It's pretty doubtful..
Be it.. pilot error.. or not.. They were still the ones behind the yoke when the plane got broken..
You bend a bird, at a big airline, you just bent your career..


As far as I know, the FO from the AA Little Rock crash in 99 is still flying for AA.

 

[ASARJMan]

Will he get an occurance?

Too funny! If it were ASA he sure would!

VOTED IN FAVOR!

 

[yaya]

Any updates today, about his health? Recovery? Seeing how everyone likes to discuss his legal problems, which are probably not really on his mind at this time.

 

[h25b]

To the best of my knowledge, there has never been a pilot successfully sued for an accident in the United States.

Sorry to say you are incorrect... The families of the passengers aboard the chartered G-III that crashed short of the runway in Aspen named the estates of the pilots, among others, in their lawsuit. They won. I assume it is in appeals but they did win the case.

 

[PumpkinPony]

http://www.whas11.com/topstories/stories/whas11_top_polehinkeupgraded.5478d8bb.html

[SIZE=+2]Condition of lone survivor of Comair Flight 5191 upgraded

[/SIZE] [SIZE=-1]06:10 PM EDT on Thursday, August 31, 2006

[/SIZE] [SIZE=-1] [/SIZE] LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) -- There was some good news for the sole survivor of Comair Flight 5191 Thursday afternoon.
Doctors have upgraded the condition of first officer James Polehinke from critical to serious.
Dr. Andrew Bernard says he upgraded Polehinke’s position because he has shown improvement in the last few days.
On Thursday, Polehinke underwent his third surgery since Sunday’s crash.
Polehinke suffered numerous injuries, including fractured ribs and a collapsed lung in the accident that killed 47 passengers and two crew members.

 

[B190Captain]

First Officer of fated flight out of coma Story by The Regional News Service

(Lexington, KY) Sitting on the beach near her Sunny Isles, Fla., home on Saturday, Honey Jackson picked up her cell phone to call her son, pilot James Polehinke who lives nearby.
She was surprised to hear him say he was in Lexington, and that he had been called in to fly the next morning even though he wasn't scheduled.
"I'm not supposed to be flying," Polehinke told her.
Jackson woke up the next morning with a sick sense of dread -- the TV news and urgent calls soon told her why: Polehinke was the first officer on Comair Flight 5191 to Atlanta, and he was the sole survivor of a crash in Lexington that killed 49 people.
Yesterday, Jackson said her son is "very near death" at the University of Kentucky Chandler hospital with severe injuries. Last night, his physician Dr. Andrew Bernard said Polehinke has emerged from a medically induced coma. He is not completely conscious but can follow simple commands. Still, the doctor said, Polehinke, 44, is critically ill and paralysis is a possibility.
Jackson is concerned about speculation that pilot error caused the crash: "My son is not responsible for this crash. He's a dedicated pilot. He was in good condition" when he boarded the flight.
On Monday, Amy Clay, wife of the plane's pilot, Capt. Jeffrey Clay who died in the crash, also told the Herald-Leader that her husband was an exemplary pilot whose actions did not cause the crash in any way.
At a briefing yesterday afternoon, National Transportation Safety Board spokeswoman Debbie Hersman clarified who was at the plane's controls and when. Hersman said 35-year old Clay drove the plane from the gate and positioned it on the shorter runway before handing the controls to Polehinke for takeoff.
Hersman indicated that both pilots had ample time to rest before the flight. Clay and Polehinke had arrived in Lexington the day before, she said, with Polehinke arriving first on a flight from Kennedy Airport in New York at 2 a.m. Saturday. Clay arrived in Lexington at 3:30 p.m. Saturday.
Hersman also said the two pilots had much experience flying to and from Blue Grass Airport. Polehinke had flown in and out of Blue Grass Airport 10 times and Clay six times in the past two years.
However, neither Clay nor Polehinke had flown from Lexington since the airport's two runways were repaved and painted two weekends ago, Hersman said.
Polehinke had last flown out of Lexington in May, and Clay had flown from the airport in June, she said.
In her briefing, Hersman described an uneventful morning for the Comair pilots before their scheduled Sunday departure. She said there was no evidence of alcohol use by either pilot.
According to an interview with a ramp worker, Hersman said, the two men checked in at 5:15 a.m., picked up paperwork and boarded what turned out to be the wrong aircraft.
They then boarded the correct aircraft and began routine checks.
Polehinke's mother said her family talked to one of her son's rescuers at the hospital who gave a version of what happened after the crash: The rescuer saw Polehinke slumped over in his seat in the cockpit and thought he was dead. The rescuer, whose name she couldn't recall, checked for a pulse. Polehinke coughed and "blood came out of his mouth," his mother said the rescuer told her.
Lexington police officer Bryan Jared, and officers Jon Sallee and Paul Maupin of the airport's Department of Public Safety are all credited with pulling Polehinke from the wreckage.
Bernard said Polehinke is more stable than when he arrived at the UK Hospital on Sunday in severe shock and requiring 40 pints of blood, his doctor said. Polehinke underwent surgery Sunday and yesterday to stabilize his bone fractures and to clean his wounds. He remains on life support and has a collapsed lung.
He was not burned in the crash and does not have a severe brain injury, Bernard said. Earlier, doctors were considering amputating his left leg, but Bernard said yesterday that the leg was repaired in surgery and there are "no immediate plans" for amputation. Polehinke has fractures in his face, spine, pelvis, right foot, right hand, ribs and breastbone, Bernard said. Another surgery on his left leg is scheduled for Thursday.
"It's difficult to say if he will survive," Bernard said.
Bernard read a statement from Polehinke's family at a news conference last night that applauded "the heroic efforts" of the rescuers and the kindness of the Lexington community. The family also thanked the staff of UK Chandler Hospital and the staff of the Delta/Comair Care Team.

"Our thoughts continue to be with the families of the passengers and crew members affected by this tragedy. We know that if he were able to, Jimmy would join us in telling them that they are in our constant prayers," their statement said.
Jackson said the news on her son's condition changes minute by minute.
"My son is broken in a million pieces. He may never be the same mentally or physically," said Jackson. "This is surreal. It's a nightmare."
Jackson said she had returned to Florida from Lexington on Monday to care for her son's dogs, which he thinks of as his "babies."
She said Polehinke's wife, Ida Askew, remains at his side at UK hospital, talking to him and holding his hand.
"The doctors say he hears us," Jackson said. "He's going to get better. We will fight for him all the way."
Polehinke graduated from East Meadow High School on Long Island, New York, in 1980, school officials confirmed yesterday. He wanted to become a pilot then, Jackson said, but instead entered the Navy. Jackson said she remembered well when her son came to her in his early 30s and said he wanted to go to school to become a pilot.
"His dream in life was to be a pilot," said his mother, whose legal name is Ellen Pleva. She goes by Honey Jackson as a singer and in her private life.
Before coming to Comair in 2002, Polehinke spent five years flying short-range twin-engine planes for Florida-based Gulfstream International Airlines. As at Comair, Polehinke did not have a history of problems, Gulfstream director of operations Tom Herfort told the Associated Press.
Jackson said Polehinke never gave her any problems as a son, either. She said that she will fight for him during the investigation of the crash and "will turn over every stone to see what happened."
Jackson said she had concerns about the reported lack of lights on the runway and about what happened in the control tower before the crash.
"The truth will come out," she said. "Maybe that's why he lived, so he could tell the truth."



(Copyright 2006 Newsroom Solutions, LLC)

Copyright 2006 Regional News Service. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.


August 31, 2006
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[79%N1]

Thanks for those updates.

 

[dingo222]

Yeah, the city of Lexington, police and fire departments, and the ambulance company.

yeah, was he wearing Nike's, abercrombie boxers, and havea pack of orbitz gum in his pocket?

 

[yaya]

thanks for the update 190. Too bad we have to sift through the retards aroround here to get info.

 

[wnplt]

Plane Crash Survivor Now Breathing On His Own
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LEX 18 News Headlines More >> Hostage Situation Ends Peacefully; Two Arrested
Flight 5191 Newlyweds Laid To Rest
Pat Smith Remembered; His Generosity Was Felt World Wide
Funerals Begin For Crash Victims
List Of Crash Victims
Wreckage Of Flight 5191 Removed From Crash Site
Moment Of Silence, Public Memorial Service Planned
First Lawsuit Filed On Behalf Of Family Of Crash Victim
Farm Hand Says He Saw Plane Bounce, Nearly Take Off
Fund Set Up To Assist Crash Victims' Families

(AP) -- The only survivor of the Comair commuter jet crash in Lexington last week is breathing on his own.
University of Kentucky spokesman Jay Blanton says 44-year-old James Polehinke is no longer on a ventilator. Polehinke was the plane's first officer and pilot. Blanton says Polehinke continues to make progress and remains in serious condition in UK Medical Center's intensive care unit.
Polehinke suffered multiple injuries in the August 27 crash at Lexington's Blue Grass Airport.
The crash of Comair Flight 5191 killed 49 people. Polehinke was pulled from the fiery wreckage by a Lexington police officer and two airport security workers, but police said the rescuers couldn't get to anyone else.
The Atlanta-bound jet took a wrong turn onto a short runway, was unable to get airborne and crashed into a nearby field.
Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.

 

[Cardinal]

She said Polehinke's wife, Ida Askew, remains at his side at UK hospital, talking to him and holding his hand

So the chick that shot the poor guy in the stomach is now at his bedside. It warms the heart.

 

[C210drvr]

They will sue GE, Bombardier, Goodyear, Collins, Airport performance group, the FAA, Coca-Cola, Lance crackers, Biscoff, Fischer nuts, The seatbelt manufacturers, Flightsafety, ATP, and Comair. Did I miss any?

Bloodsuckers

Jeppesen will probably be sued as well since the airport diagram isn't even close to accurate anymore.

 

[letthebigdogeat]

Updated: 2 hours, 16 minutes ago
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LEXINGTON, Ky. - The sole survivor of a plane crash that killed 49 people near the Lexington airport last week told family members from his hospital bed, “Why did God do this to me?” but he hasn’t mentioned the crash, a close family friend said Wednesday.
James Polehinke, who was the flight’s co-pilot, can move only his head, and tears often well up in his eyes, said Antonio Cruz, Polehinke’s mother’s boyfriend. He said the 44-year-old has been in and out of consciousness.
Polehinke hasn’t mentioned the crash, and doctors have encouraged family members not to ask him about it, Cruz told The Associated Press.
According to federal investigators, Polehinke was controlling Comair Flight 5191 when the regional jet took off from a too-short runway at Lexington’s Blue Grass Airport, crashed and caught fire in a nearby field on Aug. 27. He was pulled to safety from the broken cockpit, but everyone else aboard the plane died in the crash and fire.
A lot to recover from
Polehinke is now off a ventilator but could be hospitalized for several more weeks with facial and spine fractures, a broken leg, foot and hand, three broken ribs, a broken breastbone and a collapsed lung.
He has asked about various family members and his dogs, Cruz said, and has questioned his relationship with God.
One of the first full sentences he said after regaining consciousness was, “Why did God do this to me?” Cruz said.
Cruz said Polehinke’s mother, Honey Jackson, told him: “It was not God. It was just an accident.”
Investigators are looking into airport construction and staffing at the control tower, among other things, as a possible contributing factors to the Aug. 27 crash. The lone tower operator had turned to do administrative work as the plane turned onto the wrong runway and tried to take off, officials said. According to FAA guidelines, two control tower operators should have been working at the time.
© 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.