The Safegate Aircraft Docking Guidance System is being implemented at Los Angeles International Airport to increase runway safety and efficiency. SAFEDOCK is a fully automatic system based on a laser scanning technique that tracks jets taxiing into the terminal. This new system uses a laser to identify and guide aircraft types to an accurate stop position.…
Continue readingEver watch the airport runway workers with the orange wands signaling to a huge jet so that it can get in to a gate ? Airline pilots at Los Angeles International Airport (“LAX”) have parked jets in exactly the same way for decades. The airport marshals with the orange glow sticks could be seen in…
Continue readingLately the news has been full of reports of near-misses and minor collisions between airplanes at our nation’s airports. Most recently, two taxiing planes clipped each other’s wings at Newark airport in New Jersey. That is why Herndon airport injury lawyer Doug Landau was encouraged to read about this summer’s safety drill conducted at Washington…
Continue readingAfter a pilot’s texting was found to contribute to a fatal helicopter crash in 2011, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) issued a recommendation to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) that it prohibit crew members aboard commuter and on-demand service flights from using portable electronic devices for non-operational uses while the aircraft are operating. The…
Continue readingAirline passengers are accustomed to the announcement to power off all electronic devices during take-off and landing, and to set cell phones on “airplane mode” during the rest of the flight. How is it, then, that the pilot in a 2011 helicopter crash was found to have been texting during an ill-fated flight that killed…
Continue readingWhere does responsibility lie when an aircraft crashes? Weather? Pilot error? Defective Craft? Just as manufacturers of cars and trucks will try to shift the blame to the unsuspecting drivers of unsafe motor vehicles, product makers and suppliers in aircraft product liability cases often try to put the onus on the pilots. Negligent design and…
Continue readingImagine the neighbors’ shock when a small plane crashed into an apartment building in the wee hours of the morning in Herndon this summer ! The accident occurred as the pilot was making his way into Dulles for an emergency landing. The plane was running low on fuel, and its engine cut off. The convenience…
Continue readingAfter having seen movies where there’s an exciting chase scene on an airport runway, it was a thrill for Herndon lawyer Doug Landau to actually get to be in a chase scene of his own. In this case, lawyer Landau was chasing other runners in the Manassas Runway race ! In his own version of…
Continue readingWhile the different states have time limits for bringing a personal injury case, and the Federal Government has time limits for cases brought in Federal Courts, once a case is filed within the applicable time period, it may take years before it goes to trial. Filing the lawsuit “stops the clock” of the legal time…
Continue readingUnited Airlines confirmed its adoption of the Continental Airlines Pet Safe program as the merger of the two carriers became official last month. The Pet Safe program, which had been in place for several years, bans nine dog breeds on planes, including the American Pit Bull and Corso. Both of those breeds have caused permanent…
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