PILOT FATIGUE CITED AS POSSIBLE FACTOR IN BUFFALO CRASH
The 24-year old co-pilot aboard the commuter plane that crashed into a house near Buffalo, New York in February had traveled all night as a passenger aboard FedEx planes before boarding the plane. The co-pilot was living in Seattle, Washington and commuting to Newark, New Jersey according to National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). The NTSB began its public hearing regarding the crash last week.
Sadly, all 49 passengers aboard the Continental Connection Dash 8 turboprop were killed when the plane nosedived.
NTSB investigators are suggesting that fatigue was a factor in the fatal crash. "Her body basically said, 'I can't handle it,' " speculated Greg Feith, former NTSB air safety inspector. "I mean, we've all been there before and pulled an all-nighter. We know how that feels."
Colgan Air, the regional airline Shaw worked for, said Shaw did not "reserve adequate time to travel from her home to her base in order to ensure she was properly rested and fit for duty."
With fatigue being a possible factor in the crash, the testimony at this week's NTSB hearings is reigniting industry concerns over pilot fatigue. In the last 16 years, fatigue has been associated with 250 fatalities in air carrier accidents, Robert Sumwalt, NTSB vice chairman, said at an FAA symposium in July.
The other pilot on the flight, who had been with Colgan more than three years, had nearly a full day off before assuming command of Flight 3407. The NTSB investigation found he slept in the Newark Airport crew lounge, which is against Colgan Air regulations.
