Thu, Dec 22, 2005
We Knew It Was Going To Happen...
(Editor's Note 12.23.05: Attorneys for the
City of Chicago have disputed Baltimore television station
WJZ-TV's assertion that defense attorneys involved in the case
below have asserted the city may have improperly cleared the
runways of snow and ice, or even closed 31C completely.)
Even as NTSB investigators say they still have no definitive
idea what caused a Southwest Airlines 737 to skid off the runway at
Chicago's Midway airport two weeks ago today, now comes word two
passengers, Mariko L.A. Bennett and Stanley L. Penn, are suing the
airline for negligence.
The two Maryland men -- the flight in question had departed from
BWI -- are suing Southwest over injuries they said they received
during the accident, adding they were forced to wait on an airport
shuttle for medical attention after the accident.
The plantiffs' attorney states the pilot should have known it
was not safe to land on the snow-slicked runway.
According to WJZ-TV, the two are also going after the airplane's
manufacturer, Boeing -- which they say is also liable in the case,
as the 737-700's braking system may have been defective.
Preliminary reports on the accident have questioned the
effectiveness of the airliner's thrust reversers.
The city of Chicago hasn't escaped litigation, either. Defense
lawyers acknowledged the city may have improperly cleared the
runway of snow and ice, and that possibly 31-C should have been
closed outright, according to the Baltimore television station.
Representatives from Southwest and Boeing declined comment on
the matter, saying they are awaiting the NTSB's final determination
in the tragic mishap. As was reported in Aero-News,
a six-year-old boy riding in a car was killed when the airliner
skidded off the runway and onto an adjoining street.
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