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NTSB Investigation Into Flight That Killed Jacksonville Law Student

By Eddie Farah

Jacksonville has a connection to the airline crash that is the focus of a National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) hearing.

A local law student was one of the 49 passengers aboard who died when Continental Flight 3407 crashed February 12^th in Buffalo, New York.

Ellyce Kausner, 24, was in her second-year at Florida Coastal School of Law and known as 'bright and very articulate'. Kausner was going to Buffalo, her home, for Valentine's Day and had plans to take her nephew to school and be his special valentine.

What a special person and such a horrible loss for the survivors of those onboard, especially as we begin to get the picture that with an adequately trained crew that wasn't fatigued, the accident may have been avoidable.

The NTSB is conducting an investigation and what we are learning is that Continental Connection Flight 3407 had a pilot at the helm, Capt. Marvin Renslow, who was inadequately trained on the automatic system that was attempting to help the plane pick-up speed.

Instead he overrode the controls, the exact opposite of procedure.

Sources at the hearing say he had failed at least two flight simulator tests as well as others in his career.

The co-pilot, 24-year-old Rebecca Shaw, was not experienced in the icy conditions and both pilots had fewer than 1,000 hours of flight time combined.

The NTSB is covering the areas of investigation that an experienced aviation attorney would – reviewing aircraft maintenance, the flying conditions, ice and snow, crew training and the airline's adherence to safety rules.

Everything seems to be pointing to pilot error and a corporate policy of inadequate training and looking the other way. You can keep salaries low when you don't expect much.

Everyone who flies deserves better. Clearly there is much fault to go around here and we will hear the real story when the NTSB report is complete, giving the survivors of loved ones enough time within the two year limit, to file wrongful death claims.

All we can do is learn and work to improve this situation, and remember one important thing - if you have to travel on a regional turbo-prop and the night conditions are icy - cancel and wait for another flight with better conditions. #

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Eddie Farah

Full post as published by Jacksonville Personal Injury Lawyer on May 14, 2009 (boomark / email).