plane crash

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Sullenberger: Airline Cuts Invite Risks

(Newser) - Hero pilot Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger told Congress today that cost-cutting by carriers is forcing experienced colleagues out of jobs, to the detriment of safety in the skies, the Chicago Tribune reports. “We will see negative consequences to the flying public,” the US Airways captain said. Sullenberger himself...

Airline Warned of Runway Glitch Before Buffalo Crash

(Newser) - Add this to the mix in the Buffalo plane crash: Southwest Airlines warned its pilots just weeks ago about a landing glitch involving the same runway the Continental flight was destined for, CNN reports. It seems an earthen dam near the runway interferes with signals in a so-called instruments landing,...

Evidence Points to Pilot Error in Buffalo Crash

Investigation insiders say pilot commands, not ice, sent plane into deadly dive

(Newser) - Early examination of the evidence has led investigators to believe that pilot error rather than a buildup of ice was to blame for the crash of Continental Connection Flight 3407, sources tell the Wall Street Journal. Investigative insiders believe the captain incorrectly pulled back on the controls as the aircraft...

Plane's Wreckage Removed to Beat Buffalo Snowstorm

NTSB investigators probing de-icing system, flying conditions

(Newser) - Crews are working to shift the wreckage of Continental Connection Flight 3407 from the crash site before a snowstorm hits, the Buffalo News reports. Half the wreckage has already been removed and five of the plane's six de-icing valves have been recovered. Investigators hope to determine whether the de-icing system,...

Plane Plummeted 20 Times Faster Than Normal

Flight recorders found; cause of crash still unknown

(Newser) - Nothing went wrong on Flight 3407 until 26 seconds before the plane slammed into the ground. But in that time, it fell more than 20 times faster than normal, at one point dropping 800 feet in 5 seconds, the Buffalo News reports. Black box recorders found on the ground in...

NTSB: Buffalo Plane Was on Autopilot

(Newser) - A federal aviation official says the plane that crashed into a house near Buffalo, killing 50 people, was on autopilot when it went down, a possible violation of airline policy in icy weather. Steve Chealander of the National Transportation Safety Board says Colgan Air recommends pilots fly manually in icy...

Flight 3407 Landed Flat, Didn't Dive: NTSB

(Newser) - Defying eyewitness accounts, investigators said today that Continental Flight 3407 landed flat, not nose-first, the Buffalo News reports. The plane's parts are lying "where they should be if an airplane was laying flat," said National Transportation Safety member Steven Chealander. The turboprop was also pointing away from its...

Vital Portraits Are Sad Coda to Plane Crash

From various walks of life, victims forever united by fateful trip

(Newser) - It was just last month that a plane crash was a cause for celebration, as relieved Americans hailed the miracle landing on the Hudson. But now, after Thursday’s fatal crash in a quiet New York hamlet, the portraits of 50 vibrant, varied lives snatched away on a cold, foggy...

Buffalo Survivor Recounts 'Miracle' Escape From Home

Mother, daughter made it; father didn't

(Newser) - The plane slammed directly into their Buffalo home, but somehow Karen Wielinski and her daughter survived. “I heard a noise—planes do go over our house, but this just sounded very different,” Wielinski, 53, told WBEN radio. “The next thing I knew, the ceiling was on me....

Buffalo Crash Likely Caused by Ice: NTSB

(Newser) - The Continental turboprop plane that crashed last night near Buffalo, killing 50, was likely brought down by icing, MSNBC reports. The NTSB, which has recovered the cockpit voice recorder, said the crew talked about “significant ice buildup, ice on the windshield and wings” before crashing into a suburban neighborhood....

Carrier, Plane Had Clean Safety Record

Colgan Air has a clean flight record

(Newser) - The operator of the commuter flight that crashed near Buffalo and killed 50 people hadn’t had any major accidents on passenger flights in its 18-year history, the Houston Chronicle reports. Nor does the model of plane that crashed, the Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 turboprops, have a record of trouble....

'The Whole Sky Was Lit Up Orange'

'Direct hit' on house caused 50-foot flames

(Newser) - The twin turboprop plane crash outside Buffalo that killed 50 was a “direct hit” on a house 7 miles from Buffalo’s international airport, CNN reports. "I was able to see the underbelly of the plane," said one witness. "It was only about 75 feet above...

9/11 Widow Dies in Buffalo Crash
9/11 Widow Dies in Buffalo Crash

9/11 Widow Dies in Buffalo Crash

Woman was traveling to celebration of husband's would-be 58th birthday

(Newser) - A woman aboard the ill-fated Continental Flight 3407 was the widow of a Buffalo man killed in the 9/11 attacks, the Buffalo News reports. As the co-chair of Voices of September 11, Beverly Eckert fought for a probe into pre-9/11 intelligence failures and pushed for a memorial to attack victims....

Tapes Point to Ice as Crash Factor

Nearby pilots report icy conditions

(Newser) - Icy conditions may have been a factor in the plane crash near Buffalo that killed 50 last night, the Buffalo News reports. Just after the disaster, air traffic controllers asked other nearby pilots about ice. Several confirmed that they had "picked up rime ice." After a long pause,...

50 Dead in Buffalo Plane Crash
 50 Dead in Buffalo Plane Crash 
updated

50 Dead in Buffalo Plane Crash

Continental Airlines commuter jet smashes into home after mechanical problems

(Newser) - A Continental Airlines commuter jet crashed into a house in a hamlet near Buffalo late last night, killing all 49 passengers and crew on board and one person on the ground, the Buffalo News reports. The crash caused a huge blaze that could be seen miles away. Officials say crew...

Hero Pilot Recounts 'Sickening' Moment Engines Died

'Thank you' inadequate for speedy rescuers, says Sully

(Newser) - The moments after  the engines of US Airways Flight 1549 died were the worst of his life, hero pilot Chesley Sullenberger tells Katie Couric in a 60 Minutes interview to air Monday. Disbelief was followed by a "sickening, pit-of-your-stomach, falling-through-the-floor feeling," as an eerie silence and a disturbing...

Feds Find Birds in Both Engines

Investigation confirms pilot's story in Hudson River crash

(Newser) - Federal safety officials say they've confirmed that there were birds in both engines of the US Airways airliner that landed safely in the Hudson River last month. Remains from both engines have been sent to Washington's Smithsonian Institution to have the particular bird species identified. Officials added that an engine...

'American Pie' Singer Recalls His Hero: Buddy Holly

No rock act can top Buddy Holly: Don McLean

(Newser) - Don McLean is forever linked to Buddy Holly because of his "American Pie" tribute, and he wouldn't have it any other way. Fifty years after Holly's untimely death, McLean calls his song about the "day the music died" the proudest accomplishment of his career. "Long before I...

Flight 1549 Passengers Laud Pilot, Crew

Survivors embrace heroes at '60 Minutes' taping

(Newser) - The passengers of US Airways Flight 1549 thanked and embraced hero pilot Chesley Sullenberger at a meeting in Charlotte, NC, the Charlotte Observer reports. As part of a 60 Minutes episode on the crash, about 50 of the passengers and their families met the crew of Flight 1549. “There...

Angry Holly Family OKs CD Set, 50 Years Later

Holly's family puts aside feud with record label to release CD

(Newser) - A new CD set of Buddy Holly songs, including ones he recorded at 14, was released last week to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the singer's death, Reuters reports. Holly's family put decades of legal wrangling with Universal Music on hold to approve the collection. "They've cheated us,"...

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