D.C. plane victim’s family files $250M legal claim against FAA, U.S. army

The wife of a Connecticut man who died in January’s collision between a passenger jet and a military helicopter near Washington, D.C.’s Ronald Reagan National Airport has filed a legal claim over the crash that killed 67 people in the deadliest U.S. air disaster since 2001.

Clifford Law Offices is representing the family of Casey Crafton, who was killed when an American Airlines plane and a U.S. army Black Hawk helicopter collided and crashed into the Potomac River.

Rachel Crafton filed the claims Tuesday against the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the U.S. army, seeking US$250 million for alleged wrongdoing, that led to the collision and death of Casey Crafton, 40, of Salem, Conn., according to her Chicago-based lawyer, Robert Clifford.

“The families are filing this to achieve their goal of taking the first step towards what the whole world knows will be eventual litigation against the FAA for its air traffic control and the U.S. army relative to the operations of the helicopter,” Clifford said Wednesday.

Crafton, who left behind three young sons, was returning from Wichita, Kansas, on a business trip at the time of the crash, Clifford shared. He was a technical support manager for an aviation consulting firm.

“The passenger families on that aircraft demand justice, they demand answers, and they demand accountability, and they’re entitled to that,” Clifford said.

“Casey was an incredible human being. He was a giver. He was a loving husband and father. He enjoyed coaching his boys on their youth soccer and little league baseball teams. They will be grieving him for the rest of their lives that will never be the same,” Clifford said.

“This crash involves complex matters, and the family deserves answers as to what happened to their loved one.”

The filings were made under the Federal Tort Claims Act and are a required precursor to a lawsuit. If the FAA and army either reject or do not act on the claims within six months, a civil wrongful death lawsuit can be filed in federal court.

“The $250 million claims are directed against multiple governmental agencies that may be responsible,” according to a press release issued by Clifford Law Offices. “The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has reported that staffing in the tower of air traffic controllers (ATC) was ‘not normal’ at the time of the nighttime collision and that there were communication lapses between the ATC and the aircraft. The helicopter in the collision was operated by the Army and was manufactured by Sikorsky Aircraft.”

Clifford, who said he represents other crash victims’ families, said he also sent letters to American Airlines, Sikorsky Aircraft and Collins Aerospace demanding that they preserve any evidence relating to the crash.

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In a statement, the army declined to comment on the filing.

“Out of respect for the deceased, their families, and the ongoing investigation, it is inappropriate for the Army to comment on any speculation regarding claims or potential litigation,” army spokesperson Maj. Montrell Russell said. “Our primary focus is on supporting the families and ensuring the safety of our Soldiers and the public.”

The FAA said it does not comment on potential litigation.

Since the crash, the National Transportation Safety Board has recovered all the flight data recorders and pulled the wreckage of both aircraft from the Potomac.

On Feb. 14, investigators said the Black Hawk helicopter may have had inaccurate altitude readings in the moments before the crash, and the crew may not have heard key instructions from air traffic controllers.

NTSB chair Jennifer Homendy told reporters on Feb. 14 that the Black Hawk’s cockpit recorder suggested an incomplete radio transmission may have left the crew unable to hear air traffic control tell them, just before the crash, to move behind the jet.

“That transmission was interrupted -– it was stepped on,” she said, leaving the helicopter’s crew unable to hear the words “pass behind the” because their microphone key was pressed at the same moment.

Cockpit conversations a few minutes before the crash indicated the crew may not have had accurate altitude readings, with the helicopter’s pilot calling out that they were then at 300 feet, but the instructor pilot saying it was 400 feet, Homendy said.

Fourteen members of the figure skating community were among the 60 travellers and four crew members on board the commercial flight late on Jan. 29. An Ohio college student coming from her grandfather’s funeral, two Chinese nationals and a group of hunters returning from a guided trip in Kansas were also among those who died in the mid-air collision at Reagan national airport.

—With files from The Associated Press