June 24, 2014 — The report comes nearly a year after the Boeing 777-200ER aircaft crashed during a botched landing attempt at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) on July 6, 2013. Three people were killed in the crash and its aftermath and over 180 others were injured.
An attorney from Baum Hedlund Aristei & Goldman will be attending Tuesday’s meeting. The law firm of represents 16 passengers in their cases against Asiana Airlines and the Boeing Company.
NTSB Board Meeting
Tuesday, June 24 at 9:30 a.m.
NTSB Board Room and Conference Center
Washington, DC
What the NTSB has reported thus far in their investigation of the Asiana Flight 214 crash:
- Investigators have indicated that the pilots of the Asiana Flight 214 were flying too low and too slow during approach.
- Asiana Airlines indicated in a March filing that the “probable cause” of the crash was due to the pilots flying too slow.
- The Asiana filing also said that “inconsistencies” with the Boeing 777’s auto-throttle system were a factor in the crash. Boeing dismissed the claims, saying the plane functioned as expected.
- The Boeing filing indicated that the Asiana flight crew should have aborted the landing at 500 feet, per airline policy, due to numerous miscues with the plane’s speed and thrust setting.
- The NTSB reported that flying pilot Lee Kang Kuk was landing at SFO for the first time.
- Evacuation slides deployed inside the cabin in the aftermath of the crash, temporarily pinning a flight attendant. The manufacturer of the slides – Air Cruiser – is conducting tests.
- A San Francisco firefighter ran over one of the three girls who were killed as a result of the crash.
NTSB to Determine Probable Cause of Asiana Flight 214 Crash
May 8, 2014 — The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will convene on June 24 to determine the probable cause of the Asiana Airlines Flight 214 crash. The meeting, which will be attended by NTSB members, is scheduled nearly one year after the deadly crash occurred.
On July 6, 2013, the pilots of Asiana Flight 214 attempted to land the Boeing 777 aircraft at San Francisco International Airport’s Runway 28L after an 11-hour flight from Seoul’s Incheon International Airport. Just as the plane was touching down, the tail section slammed into a seawall at the edge of the runway, sending the plane careening down the runway before it burst into flames. Three people were killed and over 180 others sustained injuries.
At the NTSB’s first hearing on the crash last December, testimony and interviews from the flight crew of Asiana Flight 214 revealed some serious missteps. The hearing focused primarily on whether the pilots relied too heavily on flight automation, and whether Korean culture may have led to deference in the cockpit, contributing to the pilots’ inability to avoid the crash. The pilot who was landing the plane, Lee Kang Kuk, admitted to investigators that he was nervous about landing at SFO for the first time. The senior pilot on the flight was also making his first flight as a supervisor.
According to Mercury News, the outcome of the hearing will likely lead to recommendations to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) concerning pilots, flight crews and other safety issues. The hearing is scheduled to take place at 9:30 a.m. eastern time at the NTSB Board Room and Conference Center in Washington, D.C. Baum Hedlund aviation attorneys will be in attendance. The firm represents over a dozen passengers injured in the crash.
