Comments - "Boeing
Exemption" Press Conference
May 26, 1999
Angel Palank (954) 442-2638
Welcome. Thank you for
joining us this morning.
I'm Angel Palank and, as all
of you know, I've been fighting tort reform for years.
I'm here today because I -
like thousands of victims across the state of Florida - have been shut
out of the Legislative process.
For weeks, I have been
trying to arrange a meeting with Governor Bush. I sent him a written
request and have called repeatedly. In your press packets are copies
of letters written by other victims that I will be hand delivering to
the Governor immediately following this press conference.
The Governor has met with
corporate leaders, like rental car mogul Wayne Huizenga, but he has
yet to meet with the victims of corporate negligence.
We're here today to urge
Governor Bush to veto a shocking piece of legislation. In the final
weeks of the 1999 Legislative session, Boeing - the only U.S.
manufacturer of big airliners -hired a lobbyist to draft an exemption
to the tort reform bill.
The "Boeing
Exemption" bans lawsuits against the manufacturers of aircraft
that are more than 20 years old - or one-third of the nations
airliners.
Here with me today are some
of the families of airplane crash victims and an expert who will tell
you why Boeing so urgently insisted on tacking this exemption onto the
tort reform bill.
Please welcome Brenda Sue
Molnar. Brenda's brother was killed in the 1994 crash of US Air flight
427, near Aliquippa, PA. US Air 427 was a Boeing 737 - the workhorse
of commercial aircraft - that is now notorious for its rudder
malfunction.
Also, please welcome Aurelie
Becker. Her 19-year old daughter, Michelle, was killed in the 1996
crash of TWA flight 800. Aurelie is the President of the
"Families of TWA flight 800."
I would also like to
introduce Janice Watson. Janice is on the board of the National Air
Disaster Alliance. Janice lost her only child in the crash of TWA 800.
We are also pleased to have
with us today Edward Block. Ed is a nationally recognized expert in
dangerous wiring in aging aircraft. Ed is the only non-industry member
of the Federal Aviation Administration's Aging Aircraft Committee.
Also joining us today is
Joel Perwin. Joel is a Miami attorney who specializes in aircraft
disaster litigation and can answer any questions you may have about
the legal consequences of this bill.
Thank you for joining us
today.
Angel Palank
Comments - "Boeing
Exemption" Press Conference
May 26, 1999
Janice Watson (561) 362-5888
I am Janice Watson, and I
live in Boca Raton, Florida. I am on the board of the NATIONAL AIR
DISASTER ALLIANCE.
I would like to tell you why
our organization opposes this bill, but first let me tell you
something about myself.
In 1996 I lost my only child
in the crash of TWA flight 800. My daughter Jill was 32 and the love
of our lives.
After the crash, I became
involved with the National Air Disaster Alliance, trying to help
families like ours deal with the devastating aftermath of these
disasters. Our organization represents the survivors and families of
thousands of crash victims around the world. We are the largest
grassroots advocacy group in the nation working for aviation safety.
In the past few years, the
Alliance has turned its attention toward improved air safety, and that
is why I am here today to talk about the Boeing Exemption. Denying
people constitutional access to the courts is not going to promote air
safety.
The Alliance opposed this
dangerous legislation, and we urge Governor Bush to veto it. As
Governor of the 4th largest state in the nation, he must put air
safety first.
In July, 1996, TWA flight
800 crashed into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Long Island NY
killing all 230 passengers and crewmembers on board. TWA flight 800
was a Boeing 747. It was 25 years old when it crashed into the sea.
It crashed because of a
design flaw, because of frayed wiring going through the center fuel
tank - a problem common in aging aircraft that Edward Block will be
telling you about shortly.
If Governor Bush signs the
1999 tort reform bill and if a TWA flight 800 crashed in Florida, the
widows, the children, and all the families who lost loved ones would
have no recovery.
We have become a nation of
frequent fliers, and we believe we are entitled to the safest planes.
We believe Boeing, and the
airline industry, has a corporate responsibility to provide the safest
planes possible. Rather than spend money on expensive lobbyists and
campaign contributions, Boeing should spend whatever is necessary to
make its planes as safe as possible.
Since Jill's death, we have
tried to honor her memory. My work for the Alliance furthers that
goal.
I would like to leave you
with some lines of the poem Dirge Without Music, by Edna St. Vincent
Millay. "I know. But I do not approve. And I am not
resigned."
Thank you.
Janice Watson
Comments - "Boeing
Exemption" Press Conference
May 26, 1999
Edward Block (215) 750-7570
Wiring and Cable Expert formerly with the Department of Defense
I am Edward Block, and I
flew here early this morning from Philadelphia to talk with you about
the unsafe wiring in aging aircraft and the danger of the "Boeing
Exemption."
Boeing has launched a
nationwide campaign to avoid liability for its aging aircraft, which
are experiencing numerous problems.
The workhorse of the
aviation industry - the Boeing 737 has notorious rudder malfunctions
that caused the fatal crash of US Air flight 427 near Aliquippa PA in
1994, and the 1991 crash of United flight 585 in Colorado Springs.
Other Boeing aircraft that
are more than 20 years old are experiencing severe wiring problems
that cause planes, like TWA 800, to explode.
The Boeing 727's were
recently subjected to FAA emergency wiring inspections, while just a
year ago the Boeing 737-100's and 737-200's were grounded on Mother's
Day for FAA emergency inspections of their wiring and cable.
There can be no
coincidence that the 20-year limit to liability for commercial
aircraft came as it did now. Consider the following:
1. In 1979 Boeing
and by then McDonnell-Douglas, decided to change the type of
insulated wires used on their 727, 737, and DC-9's, from Polyvinyl
Chloride to Kapton (Aromatic polyimide). The fact that the Polyvinyl
Chloride would not pass the FAA's only flammability requirement
apparently never entered into the equation, however, since the FAA's
60 degree flame test, which has been instituted since 1972 to FAR
25, only applied to newer model types. If you kept the same model
type, you could continue to use the material that failed the FAA's
only wire test. This PVC was the type used on ValuJet 592, a
27-year-old plane that crashed in the Florida Everglades, May 11,
1996.
2. In 1979, yes 20
years ago, Boeing again had wire problems, but this time with the
747's. It was found that the wire insulation material they had
selected (Poly?X) was prematurely aging and cracking radically down
to the conductor after only 6,000 hours. This is the same wire
insulation material that had caused the Navy to request $360 million
in FY '83 to rewire the Topgun's F-14's after 150 of them crashed
out of 600 produced (25% crashed). Instead of rewiring, they
grounded all the F?14's and A?6's with Poly-X. It appears that they
never told the FAA, because on July 17, 1996, TWA 800 crashed with
the same old wire, Poly-X. The NTSB found 6 radial cracks in a
one-foot section of wire on that aircraft, thus paralleling the 1982
industry field-trip findings on the Navy's fleet of aircraft with
this wire type. TWA 800 had Poly?X wiring, 25 years old.
3. In 1979 the FAA
ordered Boeing to install shielding over FQIS center fuel tank
wires. These were made of extruded Teflon wire that Boeing knew had
splitting problems since 1971. They chose not to change wire types
until 1983. They also chose not to encapsulate these FQIS center
fuel tank wires by 1996, but decided to do it again in 1997, when
the FAA again issued another Airworthiness Directive to shield these
wires.
4. On March 31, 1999,
I briefed Boeing and others at a presentation to the FAA Aging
Aircraft Committee meeting in Washington DC. I lit the PVC/Nylon
wire at that presentation and demonstrated the high flammability
properties of the wiring used in aging aircraft.
Today I will also
demonstrate the flammability of the PVC/Nylon wiring used in aging
aircraft in service today.
If Governor Bush signs the
tort reform bill with the "Boeing Exemption," he is catering
to a powerful corporation and risking the lives of millions of people.
I am here because we need to do everything possible to veto this
harmful legislation.
Thank you.
Edward Block
