TWA Flight 800—New York On July 17, 1996, TWA Flight 800, a Boeing 747-100 series aircraft, exploded shortly after takeoff from JFK Airport, crashing into the waters off the coast of Long Island; 230 passengers and crewmembers died in the tragedy. Our firm presently represents the families of 55 victims of the Flight 800 crash, including families from France, Italy, Norway, and Costa Rica, as well as the 18 families of Montoursville, Pennsylvania, who lost loved ones in the crash. Frank H. Granito, Jr., is co-lead counsel of the court appointed Plaintiffs' Steering Committee (PSC), and his son, Frank H. Granito, III, serves as co-liaison counsel and a member of the PSC. The theory of liability centers on the presence of explosive fuel air vapors within the plane's center wing fuel tank that were ignited by an internal ignition source. For decades, Boeing was aware of the dangers associated with the presence of these vapors in the tanks of its commercial airplanes. Boeing's design philosophy was to eliminate potential ignition sources from entering the fuel tank. However, this design has proved to be flawed, based upon the number of explosions over the past 35 years caused by the detonation of the vapors from internal energy sources. Indeed, Boeing admitted at the TWA 800 NTSB public hearing that its design philosophy needed to be changed so as to eliminate the vapors from the fuel tanks. The TWA 800 lawsuits have been consolidated for pre-trial liability purposes before Judge Robert Sweet in the federal court in Manhattan. Survivor Awarded $20+ Million for Faulty Prop In 1995, a twin engine turbo prop aircraft, crashed while en route from Atlanta, Georgia, to Gulfport/Biloxi, Mississippi. During an attempted emergency landing, after a portion of one of the four propeller blades of the left engine separated in flight, the aircraft hit trees and crashed near Atlanta, Georgia. As a result of the crash and a subsequent fire which erupted on board the aircraft, the survivor, who was trapped in the aircraft, sustained burns over 40% of his body and suffered severe, permanent, disabling injuries which required extensive treatments including numerous surgeries, physical therapy and complete rehabilitative measures. Kenneth P. Nolan of our New York office successfully negotiated a $20+ Million settlement from the manufacturer of the propeller system and the manufacturer of the aircraft. Gerard R. Lear, managing partner of Speiser Krause and resident partner of the metropolitan Washington, D.C. office, started his career in aviation as a combat helicopter pilot for the United States Marine Corps in 1964. When he returned from Vietnam, Mr. Lear attended American University, where he earned a law degree in 1970. He was admitted to the Supreme Court of the State of Virginia in 1970 and has been active in aviation tort litigation ever since. Mr. Lear still holds commercial and instrument ratings in multi-engine, single engine, and helicopter aircraft, and brings that knowledge, in combination with his law expertise, to bear on all his cases. Prior to entering private practice, Mr. Lear served with the Office of the General Counsel of the Federal Aviation Administration, and later as a trial attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice Aviation Litigation Unit. Airline disasters are notorious for their complexity, often involving multi-district as well as international elements. To expedite a case and increase the efficiency of litigation, the presiding Judge in many cases will designate a Plaintiffs' Steering Committee (PSC) of five or so lawyers. The duty of the PSC is to represent the interests of all plaintiffs by resolving the universal issues in the case. Mr. Lear explains, "The cause of any given air crash is identical as to each victim. If, however, you have 150 victims, a court will not allow 150 lawyers to each argue the liability issues. It would take forever. The PSC approach takes a complex case and imposes a degree of order." The responsibility of the PSC is to sort out the details of a case, and to determine liability in order to pave the way for separate damage trials or settlements for each victim. Mr. Lear has served on the PSC in many cases, and as counsel for numerous others over the years. He is currently a member of the Plaintiffs' Steering Committee for the Valujet tragedy of May 11, 1996, and the Comair crash of January 9, 1997, and is counsel in the TWA 800 disaster of July 17, 1996. Mr. Lear has earned the respect of his peers and a reputation in the world of aviation law as an effective advocate and negotiator. Some remark that his resonant voice has been wasted in his current profession; radio might have been his natural calling. It's no handicap, though, and the same voice can summon a Marine Corps tone in order to get things done around the office. Those who know him say he runs a tight ship when he needs to, and that he has a natural talent for sorting through complex problems and getting results. PSC Proved Willful Misconduct in Cali Crash Speiser Krause represents more than 20 families who lost loved ones in the crash of an American Airlines Boeing 757 which impacted a mountain on approach to Cali, Colombia, on December 20, 1995. The Plaintiffs' Steering Committee, of which our firm is a member, successfully proved willful misconduct within the meaning of the Warsaw Convention by means of summary judgment. This is the first time that willful misconduct has ever been achieved prior to the start of trial. The individual damage trials in our cases are presently scheduled for the summer and fall of 1998. SK Joins Forces in $2.5 Billion Suit For the last year Speiser Krause has been involved in a large class action brought on behalf of some 1500 African American farmers across the southern United States. The metropolitan Washington, D.C. office has joined with six other law firms in order to bring this $2.5 Billion action against the United States Department of Agriculture. In January of 1998 lead counsel for the class action, Alexander Pires of Conlon, Frantz, Phelan & Pires, asked Gerry Lear to join the plaintiffs' steering committee. Mr. Lear's expertise in handling global settlements and the difficulties entailed in distributing large damage awards to numerous plaintiffs was a skill needed both in the courtroom and at the negotiating table. Since joining the trial team, Mr. Lear has been taking an active role in mediations with the government. ValuJet, Flight 592 Plaintiffs File Master Complaint—Florida Speiser Krause continues its active role in preparation for trial in the May 11, 1996 crash of ValuJet Flight 592. Managing partner Gerry Lear is a member of the Plaintiffs' Steering Committee and maintains an active and important role on the committee. Daniel D. Barks, also of the metro D.C. office, has assisted in the discovery and deposition workload in Miami and Georgia. Speiser Krause has settled several cases, and has several still headed for trial. The final Master Complaint was filed in May by all plaintiffs. The list of defendants grew substantially from the initial complaint, the final master complaint including Saberliner, the parent of maintenance provider SaberTech. The firm filed complaints for its clients in Georgia and Florida in both federal and state courts. SK Client Awarded $6 Million in Dubrovnik Crash Settlement under the Military Claims Act was reached with the U.S. Air Force for $6 Million in the death of a 48 year old executive survived by a wife and two adult children. The decedent was one of the 34 persons fatally injured with Commerce Secretary Ron Brown when the USAF transport carrying the group of U.S. corporate executives collided with a mountain near Dubrovnik, Croatia on April 3, 1996. The decedent's widow has joined with the families of other victims in actions against Jeppesen-Sanderson, Inc. consolidated in Connecticut's federal court in Hartford. It is alleged that Jeppesen's instrument approach chart was dangerously defective in its depiction of the approach procedure promulgated by the Croatian Government and that, as a result, the pilots of the USAF aircraft were induced into making a fatal error in navigation. Any recovery against Jeppesen-Sanderson, Inc. will be in addition to the $6 Million already received. This matter is being handled by Frank H. Granito, Jr. and Thomas A. Frizzell of the New York office. Discovery Concludes Against Defendants in Comair Flight 3272—Michigan James T. Crause inspects de-icing boots on EMB-120 aircraft. On January 9, 1997, an Embraer EMB-120 Brasilia commuter turboprop aircraft operated by regional airline Comair went out of control while on approach to Detroit's Metro airport and crashed, killing all 29 persons on board. In the ensuing litigation, Speiser Krause was appointed to the Plaintiffs' Steering Committee which has the responsibility of conducting pre-trial liability discovery. Discovery against defendants Embraer, the Brasilian aircraft manufacturer, Comair and Delta has just been completed. During this discovery it was learned that the EMB-120 has a history of roll upsets in icing conditions and that an ice detector system, operational on other turboprop aircraft prior to this tragedy, was not offered by the EMB-120's manufacturer. Gerard R. Lear and James T. Crouse of our metro Washington office are SK's representatives on the Plaintiffs' Steering Committee. Discovery Begins in KAL 801—Guam On August 6, 1997, a Boeing 747-300 operated by Korean Air as KAL Flight 801 from Seoul, Korea to Agana, Guam, crashed on approach to runway 6 Left at the Guam International Airport. At the time of the crash, the glide-slope associated with the instrument landing system on runway 6 Left was out of service, and the crew was conducting a localizer only approach when the aircraft struck high terrain approximately 3 miles southwest of the airport. The reported visibility was 7 statute miles with showers in the vicinity of the airport. Guam tower cleared Korean Air 801 "for ILS Runway 6L approach, glideslope unusable." Korean Air 801 acknowledged that they were cleared for the ILS approach but did not acknowledge that the glideslope was unusable. Of the 254 occupants on board, 225 were fatally injured, and 29 survived with minor to serious injuries. The claims being handled by Speiser Krause as a result of the crash of Korean Air 801 were filed in the United States District Court for the Central District of California. The SK actions, and subsequent actions filed by other law firms, have been consolidated before The Honorable Harry L. Hupp, USDCJ. Judge Hupp has designated an Interim Plaintiffs' Steering Committee which includes Juanita M. Madole of Speiser Krause's California office as Plaintiffs' Liaison Counsel; and John J. Veth also of Speiser Krause's California office as a committee member. At the present time, the defendants in the action include Korean Air Lines Company, Ltd. and Barton ATC International, Inc., the company that was providing controllers for the Agana International Tower under contract to the FAA. Once the appropriate administrative claims have been denied by the United States Government, plaintiffs anticipate amending their action to include a cause of action against the United States Government for negligence on the part of the FAA. $110 Million Settlement Awarded to 27 Families in Am Eagle Crash, Indiana On October 31, 1994, an American Eagle ATR 72 aircraft, designed and manufactured by the French/Italian consortium Avions de Transport Regional (ATR) and operated by Simmons Airlines, Inc., a subsidiary of American Airlines, crashed while operating in icing conditions near Roselawn, Indiana. The aircraft was operating at 10,000 feet and waiting for approach clearance to Chicago, when it banked steeply into a wing-low, nose-down unusual attitude from which no recovery was made before its devastating impact with the ground. Plaintiffs claimed that the aircraft was defectively designed and that the manufacturer, ATR, a joint venture between Aerospatiale of France and Alenia of Italy, failed to correct the propensity of the aircraft, borne out by numerous prior occurrences, to experience uncommanded rolls in icing conditions. Plaintiffs also claimed that the manufacturer and its two American subsidiaries, ATR Marketing and ATR Support, failed to warn operators and passengers of the aircraft's problems in icing. Plaintiffs also sued the operators of the aircraft, Simmons Airlines and AMR Eagle, Inc.; the owner of the aircraft, AMR Leasing, Inc.; American Airlines and AMR Corp., whose Chairman, Robert Crandall, had recommended the purchase of a number of ATR aircraft without investigating the prior loss of control occurrences. Plaintiffs' claims against these "Airline Defendants" included improper operation in icing conditions, faulty training, negligent weather forecasting and dispatch, failure to warn, and strict products liability. Speiser Krause represented the families of eight victims of the disaster. Three cases involving four of those decedents were settled for a total of $20 Million at the beginning of the multi-district litigation trial of this matter as part of an omnibus settlement in which 27 of the remaining plaintiffs' cases were resolved. The other four cases had settled previously for a total of $15.35 Million. Plaintiffs were represented by Gerard R. Lear and James T. Crouse of Speiser Krause in metro Washington, D.C., and by Kenneth P. Nolan of Speiser Krause in New York. Plaintiffs were also represented by Harry A. Wilson of Indianapolis, Indiana.