Philadelphia Injury Attorney Blog

During June 2009, 148,683 passengers embarked on 18,725 regularly scheduled flights from Philadelphia International Airport. If you have flown through the airport recently, the process of getting on and off of planes and traversing through Philadelphia International Airport can often times be stressful. As crowds gather through security or security check points or at the curb to check luggage, many times airport personnel are not paying attention or are not fully tuned into the task at hand. They make careless errors causing serious injuries and unfortunately sometimes fatalities.

In the past, the experienced Philadelphia premise liability and aircraft accident lawyers of Reiff and Bily have successfully handled claims where passengers have been ejected from airline transport carts, dropped from wheelchairs, injured by a baggage cart, by construction hazards, by wet floors, resulting in a slip and fall, or even by being accosted by aggressive airport personnel. Sometimes there are injuries on the tarmac or in the airport lounge or on the buses that transport you on or about airport property. It is generally clear-cut that an airline is responsible for accidents that occur on its own planes. However, the responsibility for injuries in an airport terminal itself, on the tarmac, or in airport lounges requires careful investigation. It is important to contact an experienced airport premises liability and airport accident lawyer to make sure that the proper entity or person is sued for your injuries.

If you have been injured in an airplane accident, aviation accident, or airport accident, please feel free to contact one of our Pennsylvania airport and airplane accident attorneys for a free, no obligation consultation.

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Posted In: Airline Safety

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Anytime a plane crashes, a widely publicized news story is generated. However, there are many other incidents or accidents involving aircrafts that are not so widely publicized. This includes but is not limited to aircraft accidents while loading, entering and exiting the aircraft, as well as in-flight aircraft accidents. Many incidents occur on aircraft that constitute a breach of aviation safety by putting passengers at risk for injury.

In general, the pilot of an aircraft is in command and responsible for the safety of the passengers and crews. The pilot in command is the authority or “sentry” to provide a means of safety for all individuals on board. This includes but is not limited to events that occur in a turbulent flying atmosphere, providing individuals with a safe path of entry and exit from bathrooms, permitting no dangerous conditions to exist on the aircraft, failing to discover and anticipate dangerous conditions, the need to observe, detect, and remedy possible hazardous conditions, the need to properly instruct passengers on the safety, use, and storage of materials and eliminating any hazardous conditions for passengers. The airline is also required to employ a sufficient number of flight attendants to insure the safe and proper maintenance and inspection of the aircraft, as well as to insure for the safety of the passengers.

Continue reading "You May Be Entitled to Compensation after an Airline Incident Including But Not Limited to a Plane Crash" »

Posted by Jeffrey M. Reiff | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Airline Safety

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Investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board have determined that Northwest Airlines flight 188 overflew its destination airport by more than 100 miles and failed to maintain radio communications because pilots became distracted in a conversation unrelated to the operation of the aircraft. While there were no reported injuries as a result of this concerning event, it is important to note that common carriers, including airplanes, trains, railroads, and buses, owe the highest and utmost duty of care to the precious cargo that they transport. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out the probable severity and catastrophe that could occur and the resulting consequences of the pilot of an aircraft not paying attention. Many tragic deaths and life changing events occur as a result of such negligence and failure to pay attention to the safety of the passengers.

After applying decades of experience in catastrophic injury cases, our experienced lawyers can go the extra distance to investigate and recover key factors in aircraft accidents, trucking accidents, and railroad accidents. We carefully evaluate employee screening, training procedures, and background checking of the operators for substance abuse, sleep apnea, prior violations and other problems. Our primary mission at Reiff and Bily is to hold powerful, wealthy corporations responsible for putting profitability above consumer and public safety. We believe that pilots, drivers, and railroad operators ought to pay attention to the job at task rather than become distracted in conversations which ignore the safety of passengers.

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Posted In: Airline Safety

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The Federal Aviation Administration announced on Monday, February 1, 2010 that they are proposing a 2.475 million dollar penalty against a sister carrier of American Airlines for not making sure flight crews had accurate information about the weight of baggage on dozens of flights. Incorrect takeoff flights are considered safety hazards if pilots rely on faulty information when determining the right speed for takeoff and landing. The FAA charged that Eagle operated at least 39 flights after being told of the problem. The FAA noted that between January and October 2008 American Eagle operated at least 154 flights in which baggage weight listed on the cargo records differed from data entered into an automated system for tracking and balancing weight. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood stated, “The traveling public has to be confident that airlines are following important safety rules.”

The aircraft accident lawyers at Reiff and Bily understand that the weight and balance of cargo is considered a significant issue for the smaller jets typically operated by Eagle and other regional carriers.

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Posted In: Airline Safety

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Believe it or not the most common cause of airline complaints and injures is due to turbulence that occurs while on a flight. During a turbulent encounter, if one is not securely fastened or is standing, severe injuries including broken bones, quadriplegia and paraplegia can occur. Often during a turbulent flight, the luggage from the overhead compartments can become dislodged causing blunt trauma to passengers including but not limited to multiple herniated discs and paresthesias. The airlines owe a duty to the passengers to provide a safe flying environment and the flight crews and stewardesses require specialized training in dealing with these situations and resulting injuries. Often we find that there is a breach of the protocol and henceforth, the airline can be responsible for medical care, lost wages, rehabilitation expenses, damaged property and other losses caused by their failure to maintain a safe flying environment.

If you have been injured on an airplane during a flight, it is important to have an experienced airline injury lawyer investigate your claim and represent your rights.

Posted by Jeffrey M. Reiff | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Airline Safety

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This often frustrated traveler and airline safety attorney sends kudos to the Department of Transportation who responded to tarmac horror stories by ordering federal airlines to let passengers stuck in stranded airplanes to deplane after three hours. Under the new regulations, airlines operating domestic flights will be only able to keep passengers onboard for three hours before they must be allowed to disembark. The regulation provides exceptions only for safety and security or if air traffic control advises the pilot in command that returning to the terminal would disrupt airport operations. Airlines will now be required to provide food and water for passengers within two hours of a plane being delayed on a tarmac and maintain an operable lavatory. They must also provide medical attention when necessary.

From January to June of 2009, 613 planes were delayed on tarmacs for more than three hours with their passengers kept onboard. These regulations will go into effect within 120 days from Monday, December 21, 2009. The airlines have strongly opposed a hard limit on tarmac strandings and predict in their own inimitable fashion that flights will be canceled, further delaying passengers from reaching their destinations. Indications are that airlines will be fined $27,500 per passenger over the three hour maximum limit set.

My wife, son and I were once kept “falsely imprisoned” on an airplane for over six hours with an inoperable lavatory with no food or water and Gestapo type stewardesses yelling at people to remain in their seats.

If you or a loved one has been subject to breach of airline safety or sustained an accident while on an airplane or in an airport, please feel free to contact one of our experienced airline and airport safety lawyers at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com.

Posted by Jeffrey M. Reiff | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Airline Safety

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