January 2000 marked one of the worst air disasters in the U.S. The Alaska Airlines Flight 261 from Mexico bound for Seattle crashed into the Pacific Ocean, killing all the passengers and crewmembers. The captain and his assistant, with close communication with the engineers on the ground, struggled to control the plane with little success. Immediately after the crash, the investigations commenced ascertaining the cause of the accident (Adam, 2001). In December 2002, the National Transportation and Safety Board (NTSB) revealed that the crash was a result of insufficient grease to lubricate the jackscrew, which jammed the plane’s horizontal stabilizer. The blame was squarely on the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Alaska Airlines for their failure to oversee the carrier servicing and maintenance (Goodman & Long, 2011). Additionally, the board also blamed Boeing for failure to install a fail-safe mechanism in case a total loss of the jackscrew was experienced.
The airline was investigated of fraudulent record keeping of Alaskan Airline in Oakland, indicating when the plane was last serviced. The investigation also revealed that the airline tried to conceal the cause of the crash, but the United States Attorney’s office decided not to file any criminal charges against the involved parties. However, Boeing settled 87 out of the 88 death suits that resulted from the crash. Although the financial details were kept private, the lawyers claimed that it was one of the best payouts in an air disaster (Goodman & Long, 2011). The relatives received compensation to ease both physical and emotional distress.
After the accident and investigation were completed, it was evident that the FAA, Alaska Airline, and Boeing Company were to blame for the crash. Thus, the families of the victims had the right to sue the airline for damages. Besides, the State could have sued the Federal Aviation Administration for its failure to follow the maintenance procedure of the plane (Adam, 2001). Moreover, the families and the Alaskan airline would also have sued the Boeing Company for its failure to install a backup mechanism in case jackscrew failed, which could be employed in the case of the Flight 261 crash (Barry & Jill, 2001). However, the families received compensation from the Airline and Boeing Company.
In response to the crash, Alaska Airlines offered to compensate all the victims, including passengers, crew, and the airline staff. Initially, Alaskan Airline had already paid the passengers who were covered by the Warsaw Convention. Additionally, in memory of the victims of Flight 261, the airline mounted sculpture of a leaping dolphin at Port Hueneme (Goodman & Long, 2011). The decision to compensate the families was made by the airline board after evidence clearly revealed that most of the mistakes were entirely on the Alaskan Airline.
Notably, the Alaskan Airline flight 261 was one of the most devastating air disasters in the United States. The company had a reputation for flying even in the most challenging weather conditions. However, the investigations revealed that the airline had forgone some of the maintenance procedures, which was one of the main causes of the accident. After lengthy negotiations, the airline decided to compensate the families of the deceased. The FAA and Boeing Company were also to blame for the accident due to their failure to ensure that maintenance standards were followed, including a backup mechanism in case the normal one failed.
References
Adam, C. (2000, Feb 06). The fall of flight 261. Times Magazine. Retrieved from http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,38815-1,00.html
Barry, F. & Jill, D. (2001). The status of pending air crash litigation. Journal of Air Law and Commerce, 66(4), 1367-1402. Retrieved from https://scholar.smu.edu/jalc/vol66/iss4/4/
Goodman, C & Long, P. (2011). Alaska flight 261 bound for Seattle crashes into the Pacific Ocean on January 31, 2000. History Link.org. Retrieved from https://www.historylink.org/File/2958
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