Relatives of those killed in 2001 Linate crash file lawsuit against Cessna

Airline Industry Information, Oct 16, 2003

AIRLINE INDUSTRY INFORMATION-(C)1997-2003 M2 COMMUNICATIONS LTD

The families of 70 people killed in a runway collision at Milan's Linate airport are suing Cessna Aircraft Co and Boeing subsidiary Jeppesen Sanderson Inc, which makes navigational charts, for wrongful death.

A total of 118 people died when a Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) aircraft collided with a Cessna corporate aircraft on the tarmac on 8 October 2001. The 110 people on the SAS aircraft, bound for Copenhagen, Denmark, were killed, as were the four people on the Cessna aircraft which crossed the SAS MD-87's path. Four ground workers were also killed in the incident.

The lawsuits allege that the aircraft maker was negligent and liable as the Cessna employees flying the aircraft were not trained to do so in poor visibility. The Cessna pilots used charts made by Jeppesen Sanderson and these are alleged to have included "invalid, inaccurate, outdated or otherwise misleading information."

The relatives are seeking at least USD5.25m in damages, The Associated Press reported.

((Comments on this story may be sent to aii.feedback@m2.com))