(Brazil - WABC, June 1, 2007) - A court spokesman says two American pilots have been indicted on manslaughter-related charges in Brazil's worst-ever airline crash.
The two pilots, from Long Island, were involved in a September 29, 2006 collision between an executive jet and a Gol Airlines Boeing 737.
The crash killed 154 people.
Joseph Lepore and Jan Paladino spent more than two months in a hotel while officials investigated their role in the incident. They were eventually released on the stipulation that they would return if criminal charges were filed.
Lepore, of Bay Shore, and Paladino, of Westhampton Beach, were flying a small plane that clipped the wings of the Brazilian Gol airliner.
Brazilian authorities had seized the pilots' passports, and while the men were not under arrest, they chose to remain in their Rio de Janeiro hotel.
The pilots contend they were cleared by controllers to fly at 37,000 feet. None of the seven people aboard the private Legacy jet, owned by Excel-Aire of Ronkonkoma was hurt.
Brazilian prosecutors determined in early May that the Long Island pilots were responsible for the crash. Officials described the actual charge as exposing and aircraft to danger resulting in death, which they said was akin to involuntary manslaughter.
The two pilots, from Long Island, were involved in a September 29, 2006 collision between an executive jet and a Gol Airlines Boeing 737.
The crash killed 154 people.
Joseph Lepore and Jan Paladino spent more than two months in a hotel while officials investigated their role in the incident. They were eventually released on the stipulation that they would return if criminal charges were filed.
Lepore, of Bay Shore, and Paladino, of Westhampton Beach, were flying a small plane that clipped the wings of the Brazilian Gol airliner.
Brazilian authorities had seized the pilots' passports, and while the men were not under arrest, they chose to remain in their Rio de Janeiro hotel.
The pilots contend they were cleared by controllers to fly at 37,000 feet. None of the seven people aboard the private Legacy jet, owned by Excel-Aire of Ronkonkoma was hurt.
Brazilian prosecutors determined in early May that the Long Island pilots were responsible for the crash. Officials described the actual charge as exposing and aircraft to danger resulting in death, which they said was akin to involuntary manslaughter.
