until the Federal Aviation Administration requires
New Film Challenges NTSB
By Mike Danko on
Posted in NTSB
The National Transportation Board investigates every general aviation accident. It chalks up the vast majority to pilot error. But half the time, it’s just wrong.
The trouble’s that, in investigating an accident, the NTSB refuses to consult with the pilot’s family or the family’s experts. Rather, it invites into the investigation only other potentially responsible…
FAA’s Approval of the 737 Max Questioned – But Why Now?
By Mike Danko on
Both the Department of Justice and Transportation Department’s inspector general are investigating the FAA’s approval of the Boeing 737 Max and, in particular, the aircraft’s anti-stall system known as MCAS.
The FAA is supposed to ensure that Boeing aircraft are safe. Investigators want to know:
- Are the FAA and Boeing too cozy?
- Is the FAA’s
…
FAA Turns Over Increasing Inspection Authority to Manufacturers
Four years ago, the NTSB questioned whether manufactures like Boeing should be allowed to self-certify that their aircraft designs meet FAA requirements. The NTSB suggested that “self-certification” may have contributed to the battery fires that were being experienced on Boeing’s 787s. After all, it’s the FAA’s job to make an independent determination that an aircraft…
Bogus Airplane Parts and a Cessna 182 Crash
By Mike Danko on
A courageous client speaks to Stephen Stock about the risks to the flying public.
Aviation Defense Attorneys Tout Their Chummy Relationship With The NTSB
By Mike Danko on
Posted in NTSB
The NTSB allows aviation manufacturers to participate in its crash investigations. But it excludes from the investigation the crash victims, the victims’ lawyers, and their experts. That’s how the NTSB has gone about investigating aviation accidents for years. It’s little wonder, then, that the NTSB’s final reports are frequently biased in favor of the manufacturers…
NTSB Recommends Crashworthy Fuel Tanks for All New Helicopters
By Mike Danko on
Robinson Helicopters began installing crash-resistant fuel tanks in 2010. Robinson Helicopters with fuel tanks installed before then tend to catch fire during accidents that, but for the fire, would have been survivable.
The Australian authorities thought that the safer tanks were a good idea. Enough Robinsons had caught fire after minor accidents that in 2013…
NTSB Sued for Obstruction of Justice
By Mike Danko on
Posted in Lawsuits of Note, NTSB
Families of those involved in five different general aviation crashes and their lawyer are suing the NTSB, charging it with obstruction of justice. The suit claims that the NTSB withheld from the families information concerning each of the crashes in violation of the Freedom of Information Act.
I’ve commented before about how the NTSB’s “…
USA Today: Cover-ups Mask Roots of Small-Aircraft Crashes
By Mike Danko on
Posted in General Aviation, NTSB
A few hours ago, USA Today published a lengthy investigative report devoted to small aircraft crashes. The conclusion: aviation manufacturers have long concealed the fact that their defectively designed products cause aircraft crashes and injures. And the investigating agencies, including the NTSB and FAA, let them get away with it.
The report covers many of…
Reno Air Crash: NTSB Critical of Race Organizers’ Tracking of Aircraft Discrepancies
By Mike Danko on
No conclusion yet as to exactly what caused the Galloping Ghost to crash last September at the Reno Air Races. But the interim report the NTSB issued today disclosed that the Galloping Ghost experienced an “upset” 6 seconds before it lost its left elevator trim tab. That, in turn, caused the aircraft to go out of control.