An aviation expert retained by the J.C. Reiter Law Firm, Randall Brink who has 30 years of senior airline management experience leading US and international Airline companies, states that the plane’s loss of air speed and inappropriate response by the flight crew were substantial factors in causing the crash of Continental Airlines Flight 3407 in Clarence Center, New York on February 12, 2009, killing 50 people. Based upon his knowledge and experience, as well as data recently released by the NTSB, Brink stated his preliminary opinion as follows:
“There has been broad speculation following the crash of Continental Flight 3407 that airframe icing, masked by the use of the aircraft’s autopilot, was the root cause. Since the accident occurred, careful analysis reveals a more plausible theory, one that acknowledges that meteorological conditions and aircraft anti-and de-icing systems were not the most significant factors. Data from the CO3407 Flight Data Recorder (FDR) indicates the aircraft entered an aerodynamic stall from which it never recovered. The stall occurred due to airspeed decay that went unnoticed by the flight crew. Simply stated, this means that the plane was allowed to slow down too much, triggering the “stick shaker” or stall warning activation system.
The Bombardier DHC-8 Q400 is not equipped with “auto throttle” which may have prevented the loss of airspeed. Preliminary findings by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) indicate that flight crew control input(s) in response to the stall warning system activation likely contributed to the stall condition. These included, in my opinion, pulling the nose up too sharply that worsened the stall and led to the loss of control and ultimately the crash.”
Randall Brink’s experience and qualifications in detail are available upon request.
Reported by New York personal injury lawyer Jonathan C. Reiter an aviation accident attorney practicing in the area of catastrophic injuries. Empire State Building, 350 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2811, New York, NY 10118. Telephone (212) 736-0979 www.jcreiterlaw.com
