NTSB CHAIRMAN TESTIFIES BEFORE CONGRESS ON THE CRASH OF
COLGAN AIR FLIGHT 3407
Washington, DC – National Transportation Safety Board
Chairman Deborah A. P. Hersman testified in the U.S. Senate
today about the status of aviation safety a year after the
crash of Continental Flight 3407 near Buffalo, New York on
February 12, 2009. The flight was operated by Colgan Air.
The crash resulted in 50 fatalities, including all of the
passengers, the flight crew, and one person on the ground.
The NTSB issued its final report on the investigation of the
accident following a public board meeting on February 2.
Chairman Hersman provided a summary of the investigation
that led to the Board’s final report and a determination
that the probable cause of the accident was the captain’s
inappropriate response to an aerodynamic stall from which
the airplane did not recover.
At the hearing before the Subcommittee on Aviation of the
Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation,
Hersman noted that the Safety Board’s final report makes 25
new recommendations to the FAA and reiterates 3 previously
issued recommendations. The recommendations cover a wide
range of safety issues that were factors in this accident,
including pilot training and fatigue. Just last week, the
NTSB updated its 2010 Most Wanted List of Transportation
Safety Issues to better emphasize these 2 safety concerns,
Hersman noted.
“If we are serious about aviation safety, we must establish
a system that minimizes pilot fatigue and ensures that
flight crews report to work rested and fit for duty,” said
Chairman Hersman. “We must also have a system in which we
are steadfastly confident that all of our commercial pilots
are proficient and well-trained.”