Commuter Air Disaster Ends Airline Safety Streak - Recent Airport Construction May Have Played a Role

CLEVELAND, Aug. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- The "safest period in aviation history" ended tragically on August 27, 2006 with the crash of Comair Flight 5191 at Blue Grass Airport in Lexington, Kentucky. In the first major commercial air disaster in the United States since November 2001, a twin-engine CRJ-100 operated by Comair, a commuter subsidiary of Delta Airlines, crashed during an early morning takeoff.

A full NTSB investigation of the causes of this disaster may take over a year. Initial reports from state and federal investigators, however, indicate that the flight departed from an airport runway considered far too short for the aircraft. The investigation is likely to focus on why the flight crew tried to take off from the wrong runway, as well as why air traffic control personnel failed to catch the error before clearing the aircraft for takeoff. As part of its investigation, the NTSB also will look into whether better aircraft design or airline emergency procedures could have saved surviving passengers from the post-crash fire that engulfed the aircraft. Aviation industry insiders familiar with the airport, however, also believe that recent runway construction may have played a critical role in the events causing the crash. Mr. Lebovitz has a team of experts on the ground investigating the facts and circumstances of this crash.

James R. Lebovitz, a senior partner and chair of the aviation practice of the law firm of Nurenberg, Paris, Heller & McCarthy Co., L.P.A., has experience in the investigation and litigation of commercial and general aircraft accidents. Founded in 1928, Nurenberg Paris (http://www.nphm.com/) has helped many families through the tragedy of aviation disasters. Mr. Lebovitz has been involved in numerous major air crash cases, including the crash in Taiwan of Singapore Flight 006, which also involved an aircraft being misrouted to the wrong runway due to airport construction issues. He is also lead counsel involved in pending litigation surrounding the recent crash of Corporate Airlines Flight 5966 commuter Jetstream aircraft. Mr. Lebovitz has served as a member of the court-appointed litigation steering committees representing the families of passengers who were injured or killed in the following air disasters:

   * Corporate Airlines Flight 5966 in Kirksville, Missouri
   * Alaska Air Flight 261 near Point Mugu, California;
   * Singapore Airlines Flight 006 near Taipei, Taiwan;
   * Egypt Air Flight 990 crash near Nantucket Island, Massachusetts;
   * Swissair Flight 111 crash near Halifax, Nova Scotia;
   * USAir Flight 427 crash near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania;
   * ValuJet Flight 592 crash in the Florida Everglades;
   * USAir Flight 1016 crash in Charlotte, North Carolina;
   * United Airlines Flight 232 crash in Sioux City, Iowa.

Mr. Lebovitz is available to comment on the legal and technical issues relating to air disasters and air crash investigations, including the history of commuter airline safety and the rights and remedies of victims and their families. Arrangements for interview and commentary may be made through Mr. Lebovitz's senior assistant, Tamara Brininger, at (216) 694-5204.