Category: Aviation

Boeing’s two 737 Max 8 jet crashes and the investigations that followed may change the aviation industry for the better. The October 29, 2018 Lion Air crash killing all 189 people on board and then 5 months later the crash in Ethiopia that claimed another 157 lives brought into focus how a small automated flight…

Airplane pilots and passengers who plan to fly after scuba diving should allow the body time to rid itself of excess nitrogen absorbed during the dive. The recommended wait times are 12 hours for flights below 8,000 feet for dives that did not require a controlled ascent and 24 hours if the flight will be…

A Federal Judge has agreed that passengers who flew on since-grounded Boeing 737 Max planes can proceed with a proposed class action suit that accuses the aircraft manufacturer and Southwest Airlines of conspiring to hide the jets’ safety issues. Earl et al. v. Boeing Co. et al., No. 19-cv-507, 2020 WL 759385 (E.D. Tex. Feb….

With the spread of the Coronavirus, airlines are under scrutiny for more passenger safety. We may see more claims like the one made by a New Jersey woman who says she contracted tuberculosis on a 2018 flight from Nigeria because Ethiopian Airlines negligently seated a contagious passenger next to her and refused her request to…

Our own Kevin D. Neal is featured in a Q&A on Attorney at Law Magazine, in which he talks about his 30-year career, his motivations, and lessons he has learned as an attorney practicing in wrongful death and personal injury.  This article is full of insights for anyone who is interested in the practice of…

A pilot should not fly an airplane or helicopter within 72 hours after a blood donation or transfusion due to the lowering of oxygen carrying capacity of blood following a blood donation or transfusion.

Spatial Disorientation can be a killer. An extremely dangerous situation occurs when a pilot unintentionally flies from visual flight rules  (VFR) into instrument meteorological conditions (IMC). While these accidents represent a small number of the total crashes every year, they also represent a disproportionate percentage of the fatalities. Early indications are that the helicopter crash…

General aviation pilots should regularly assess their recent flight experience, training, and pilot certification to develop personal minimums for wind, ceiling and visibility, and instrument approach minimums. For instance, a pilot should not attempt to takeoff or land when the wind speed and crosswind component exceed their capabilities.

Due to the unique characteristics of helicopters, they are used in a variety of missions that can test both the skills of the pilot and the helicopter’s performance. Since helicopters can fly low, slow, hover and land vertically they are ideal for  law enforcement, search and rescue, news, and sight-seeing. On the other hand, these…

Garmin is a company that makes avionics for airplanes. The company recently introduced an emergency one-button “Autoland” system on certain airplanes. When pushed, the system takes over and engages the autopilot, announces an emergency on the radio, evaluates weather and terrain and then flies the plane to the nearest suitable airport where it not only…

A pilot’s primary responsibility is to avoid a loss of control (LOC) of the aircraft. Loss of control in-flight (LOC-I) is a leading cause of fatal general aviation accidents in the U.S. and commercial aviation worldwide. The FAA defines LOC-I as a significant deviation of an aircraft from the intended flightpath. This often results from…

There have been a lot of questions about helicopters flying in clouds and fog. A term used frequently by pilots, and recently by the media, is IMC conditions. IMC stands for Instrument Meteorological Conditions. When Visual Flight Rules (VFR) flight suddenly enters into IMC, the likelihood of a catastrophic outcome increases dramatically. One reason can…