Los Angeles Injury News
The Airline Employee Protection Act: Yet another Paper Tiger offered up by Congress
In 1997, the deregulation of the airline industry is a fait accompli, and the deregulated air carriers now fly the vagaries of the marketplace. The Airline Deregulation Act of 1978 ("ADA") abandoned industry-wide fare structures, altered the procedures for entry into new markets, and phased out the Civil Aeronautics Board. Understandably, Congress was concerned… Read More »
The FAA’s Charitable Contribution to Charities
by Charles M. Finkel, Esq. I had been the proverbial ostrich, with my head stuck far into the sand, when the head of a charitable flying organization gave me a call a few days ago. He questioned me about an article he had read concerning the legality of pilots flying charity missions. The article… Read More »
$9 Million Bad Faith Verdict
LOS ANGELES JURY SLAPS AVIATION INSURER WITH BAD-FAITH VERDICT OF $1.8 MILLION COMPENSATORY AND $7.2 MILLION IN PUNITIVE DAMAGES Last Friday a Los Angeles jury returned a verdict against an aviation insurer for over $9 million in compensatory and punitive damages. The jury in the case entitled National Test Pilot School, et al., vs…. Read More »
Do I have a right to recover?
The Accident An experienced pilot and co-pilot are at the controls of a DC-9 as it approaches an international airport during a violent thunderstorm. The aircraft is carrying 52 passengers and a crew of five. The weather is typically hot and muggy for the time of year. The captain’s decision to proceed with the… Read More »
Update: Wire Strikes
By William H. Wimsatt Exposure to wires, antennas or other obstructions to air navigation generally occurs within and around the airport environment for airplanes. For agricultural aircraft they are a fact of life; and wire strikes are the No. 1 cause of helicopter accidents. Historically, pilots have borne the brunt of responsibility for wire… Read More »
Airport and in-flight security: Who’s responsible?
By William H. Wimsatt The September 11, 2001 air tragedies involving four airliners which were hijacked and then used as human bombs on the Trade Center buildings and Pentagon will cause all of us to re-think air travel security. The people in a position to bear this responsibility most effectively are those both on… Read More »
Korean Air Flight 801: Warsaw and the FTCA
Written by Anne M. Huarte for trial attorneys and partners, William H. Wimsatt and Peter T. Cathcart of: MAGAÑA, CATHCART & McCARTHY 1801 Avenue of the Stars, Suite 810 Los Angeles, California 90067-5899 (310) 553-6630 mcmc-law.com Presented by William H. Wimsatt Introduction In this air tragedy case, Article 28 of the Warsaw Convention prevented… Read More »
Alaska Airlines Flight 261
The tragic aircrash of Alaska Airlines Flight 261, a Boeing (nee McDonnell-Douglas-83) aircraft, on 31 January 2000 has received considerable scrutiny from the news media, as reports of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigation into the cause of the accident and other civil investigations unrelated to this aircrash and pertaining to maintenance practices… Read More »
Singapore Airlines Flight 006
By Charles M. Finkel, Esq. As can be seen by the recent crash of Singapore Airlines Flight 006, no matter how safe airline travel has become, there are occasional accidents which tragically alter the lives of innocent passengers and their families. It may be months before the causal chain of events leading to Flight… Read More »
Air France Flight 447
Air France Disaster Worst Commercial Airline Crash Since 2001 On Wednesday, June 3 Air France CEO Pierre-Henri Gourgeon privately met with family members of Flight 447 and confirmed fears that all 228 people on board perished. Gourgeon indicated that the plane either broke apart in the air or on impact with the ocean, and… Read More »
