IMPLEMENTATION
OF TASK FORCE RECOMMENDATIONS
1. The Task Force issued
guidelines and recommendations to assist air carriers in
responding to aviation disasters.
1.1 The Task Force
recommended that the definition of "family member" for
purposes of notification and provision of airline services should
not be rigidly defined.
- The Task Force found
that airlines should not rigidly define family member for
purposes of notification and provision of services, so
that the airlines can extend notification and services to
those who may not meet the legal definition of "next
of kin." Airlines recognize that the definition of
family member could be extended to close friends or
companions of the victim, and usually will provide
services to those persons. Most U.S. air carriers
determine family members for purposes of notification and
provision of services on a case-by-case basis, as
familial situations vary. Carriers would choose to err of
the side of being inclusive rather than exclusive.
1.2 The Task Force
proffered guidelines for the initial notification of family
members by the air carrier in the immediate aftermath of an
aviation disaster, including the use of third parties to assist
in the notification process.
- The U.S. House of
Representatives passed legislation that would amend the
Family Assistance Acts (the Aviation Disaster Family
Assistance Act of 1996, which applies primarily to U.S.
air carriers, and the Foreign Air Carrier Family Support
Act of 1997) to include an assurance by air carriers that
they will inform the family, upon request, whether the
passengers name appeared on a preliminary passenger
manifest for the flight involved in the accident.
- Major air carrier
plans call for the notification of families individually
if they have information that a family member was on
board the flight, rather than waiting for whole manifest
to be released. While a toll-free number is required by
law, certain airlines also provide additional toll-free
numbers such as one for relatives once they initially
call in, so that they will not experience a busy signal
or delay if they call again. In addition, many airlines
have also instituted a "Call Home" program for
employees, whereby employees contact their families once
the disaster occurs so that phone lines are cleared for
passenger families.
- After first notifying
their families, Swissair initially posted the names of
227 people on the flight on its website, www.swissair.com., in an effort to limit
phone inquiries to the airline following an aviation
disaster. Major U.S. air carriers have similar plans to
utilize the internet in such a situation.
- With respect to the
use of third parties to assist in the notification
process, the National Air Carrier Association (NACA), on
behalf of Miami Air International, North American
Airlines, Omni Air International, Tower Air, and World
Airways, reached arrangements with Family Enterprises,
Inc., to provide aviation crisis management services in
event of an aviation disaster anywhere in the world.
According to NACA, who served as a member of the Task
Force, Family Enterprises has assured each carrier that
in the event of an aviation disaster, Family Enterprises
will handle the disaster by providing all of the
toll-free number communication requirements, coordination
with the next of kin, and on- site representation at the
scene.
1.3 The Task Force
recommended that airlines assist family members with travel to
and accommodations at accident sites and memorial services.
- Major air carriers
have adopted plans to assure that family member travel
should not be delayed due to full flights to the location
of the family assistance center or requirements to fly on
a particular carrier. Other air carriers will work with
families to ensure that they spend the appropriate amount
of time at a family assistance center. United Airlines,
for example, has placed into its family assistance plan a
provision that would allow a family to travel between the
accident site and their residence, if the family so
chooses.
- The U.S. House of
Representatives has also passed legislation that would
amend the Family Assistance Acts to include language
stating that "nothing may be construed as limiting
the actions that an air carrier may take, or obligations
that an air carrier may have, in providing assistance to
the families of passengers involved in an aircraft
accident."
- Swissair arranged
special daily charter flights to Halifax from New York
and Switzerland for families to visit the crash site and
to receive briefings on the status of investigations. In
Halifax, 900 rooms were reserved for families of victims,
along with transportation to Peggys Cove near the
site of the crash. Families gathering in New York at JFK
Airport were lodged at a nearby hotel.
- In addition to
provision of travel and lodging, the Task Force
recommended that airlines consider the provision of
financial assistance to families in their time of need.
The European Union Council proposed a regulation in
October 1997, which would require its member airlines to
compensate those persons or families involved in an
airline disaster within fifteen days after the identity
of the person. Advance payments are to be made to meet
immediate economic needs on a basis proportional to
hardship suffered. The payment should not be less than
the equivalent in ecus (European currency units) of
15,000 SDR (special drawing rights) per passenger in the
event of death (1 SDR = 1.3664 US dollars). If airlines
choose not to provide compensation, the airline must
inform the passengers at the time of ticket purchase.
Swissair chose to make a lump sum payment to each family
in the amount of $US 20000.
1.4 The Task Force
prepared guidelines for training of air carrier personnel who
interact with family members.
- Legislation passed by
the U.S. House of Representatives would amend the Family
Assistance Acts to include assurances by the air carriers
that they will provide adequate training to their
employees and agents to meet the needs of survivors and
family members following an accident. Many air carriers
had family assistance plans in place prior to the
enactment of the legislation. TWA, for instance,
implemented a family assistance plan with a training
component in 1992.
- All major U.S. air
carriers have already implemented and improved their
training plans and programs designed to meet the needs of
families in the aftermath of aviation disasters.
Continental Airlines, for instance, has implemented
different types of training for different levels of
personnel: emergency volunteers, front line reservations
personnel, airline personnel, station managers, and
corporate communication vendors. Northwest Airlines has a
training program that, among other aspects, trains
"Assist Members" to provide for logistical
assistance to family members in a caring and
compassionate way.
- The Task Force also
recommended that an explanation of the role of the
government be included in airline training sessions. The
National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), as well as
the Department of Transportation (DOT), have participated
in many airline training sessions to explain to the
airlines the governments role in aviation disaster
response, so that the government and the airlines can
coordinate in assisting families.
- The Task Force found
that airline training programs should use survivors and
family members to share their personal experiences either
in person or on video tape during the training process.
Many U.S. air carriers, including American Airlines,
utilize family member testimony in their preparedness
training sessions. Task Force members Frank Carven, Joe
Lychner, and Kendra St. Charles have all participated in
various airline training sessions to emphasize to airline
employees the necessity of prepared personnel in the
event of an aviation disaster.
1.5 The Task Force
stressed the importance of the return of personal effects
(property) to the family members by the airline.
- Many airlines hold
personal effects for time periods longer than 18 months,
the time required by the Family Assistance Acts, so as to
afford families as much time as necessary to receive
effects at each familys personal pace.
- The Task Force also
recommended that airlines retain a private company that
specializes in the identification and return of personal
effects to ensure adequate and effective return of
passenger property.
- Kenyon International
Emergency Services, a provider of services associated
with personal effects, continues to work with the NTSB
two years after the TWA 800 crash in returning personal
items to families, and is working with Swissair on the
return of the personnel effects to families of Flight 111
passengers. Other air carriers have contractual
arrangements with other service providers in this area.
1.6 The Task Force
offered guidelines concerning the interaction between the
airlines and American Red Cross in assisting the victims of
aviation disasters.
- The NTSB has
designated the American Red Cross (ARC) as the
"independent nonprofit organization" to provide
for the emotional well-being of survivors and families
who lost loved ones in an aviation disaster. Accepting
this role, the ARC has initiated plans to prepare for and
implement that role in the event of an aviation disaster
involving foreign or domestic carriers that occur within
the continental United States. Recognizing that this role
must be implemented in close coordination with the
activities of the NTSB, affected air carriers, airports,
emergency response agencies, and related agencies and
organizations, the ARC has developed procedures and
activities to meet its responsibilities, and continues to
do so. The ARC has prepared a document intended to
provide agencies and organizations with an overview of
the preparedness and response activities that the ARC
will provide for aviation disasters. Included in this
document are preparedness and response activities for
local chapters and national headquarters, as well as
assigned duties for aviation incident response teams and
disaster relief operations.
- The NTSB Office of
Family Affairs hosted a meeting this year with
representatives from domestic, international, and
regional air carriers, along with representatives of the
ARC. The ARC presented information on its accomplishments
and its objectives for the upcoming year. They also
discussed the guidance provided to its local chapters on
working with local airline representatives and airports
to assist them in developing their plans. This forum
provided ample opportunity for all participants to ask
and respond to questions, resulting in beneficial
information sharing.
2. The Task Force issued
recommendations to ensure that families of non-U.S. citizens
involved in an aviation disaster receive appropriate assistance
from both the airline and the U.S. government.
- Since the issuance of
the Task Force report, the Department of State has
implemented and otherwise acted in furtherance of a
number of the Final Report's recommendations. The State
Department was pleased with the promptness with which a
toll-free number was established after the crash of
Swissair Flight 111 for the families, as well as the
swift deployment of care givers by Swissair and Delta Air
Lines to assist the families in Switzerland, Canada, New
York, and in the homes of many families who chose not to
fly to Halifax. These two procedures, as recommended in
the Task Force's Report, helped to allay anxiety and
frustrations of family members during the immediate hours
and days following the crash.
- The State Department
has entered into a Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) with
14 U.S. air carriers reflecting Best Practices and
Procedures in the event of an aviation disaster. The MOU
provides a basis for cooperation and mutual assistance in
reacting to aviation disasters occurring outside the
United States with the goal of improving the treatment of
victims families.
- The Swissair Flight
111 crash on September 2, 1998, was the first time the
MOU was utilized. The MOU between the State Department
and Delta Air Lines inspired two positive changes to the
State Department's response to an aviation disaster.
First, the Department received in a timely manner the
manifest from Swissair/Delta Air Lines. Secondly, liaison
officers from Delta Air Lines joined the Department of
State Working Group and provided information and insights
that were critical to avoid miscommunications.
- The Department of
State is also appreciative of the roles played by the DOT
and NTSB in the aftermath of the crash of Swissair Flight
111. The NTSB, at the invitation of the State Department,
was asked to send family affairs personnel to the recent
Swissair 111 crash off the Halifax coast. Two family
affairs officers were dispatched to the scene where they
assisted State Department consular officers in ensuring
that American victims and families were given all the
assistance they needed. An NTSB forensic anthropologist
was invited into the temporary morgue established by the
Canadian government.
- DOT also assisted the
State Department by focusing on the need for presumptive
death certificates. This helped to facilitate the
acquisition of the victims presumptive death
certificates, which becomes necessary for the victim's
families until the report of death can be completed.
- Since the issuance of
the Final Report, the State Department has maintained a
dialogue with the airlines by participating in training
exercises and visiting airline crisis centers.
3. The Task Force issued
recommendations to improve the passenger manifests (or other
systems) used by the airlines to establish points of contact with
families of passengers.
- The Department of
Transportation issued on February 18, 1998, a final rule
to require enhanced passenger manifests for flights to or
from the United States. The rule, effective October 1,
1998, will require certificated U.S. and foreign air
carriers to collect a full name of each U.S. citizen
traveling on flight segments to or from the United
States, and to solicit a contact name and phone number.
The rule allows each carrier to develop its own
collection system. Implementation of the rule will
provide the government with prompt and adequate
information in the event of an aviation disaster and
permit the State Department to carry forth its
responsibility to notify families of U.S. citizens killed
overseas in a timely manner.
- The State Department
looks forward to the implementation of the passenger
manifest rule on October 1, 1998. This will assist the
Department in determining who is a United States citizen
so that it may fulfill its legal obligations to either
the individual or his or her family in the event of an
aviation disaster abroad.
- Airlines are working
to ensure that they can comply with the passenger
manifest rule. Over 80 U.S. air carriers and over 150
foreign air carriers have filed plans with DOT on how
they will improve their passenger manifests. Others are
conducting drills to ensure that the manifest is
confirmed in the most timely manner possible. In
particular, one airline has dedicated a room used only
for emergency passenger manifest operations, and has
assigned the function of passenger manifest coordination
to their 24-hours reservations center. In addition,
during a recent drill conducted by Continental Airlines
for members of the Task Force, the average time for a
name to be confirmed on the manifest was less than one
minute.
- The Task Force
issued recommendations on uniform guidelines for medical
examiners and coroners on the identification of the
remains of victims.
- The NTSB continues its
dialogue with the medical examiner community that was
established last year when Chairman Jim Hall spoke at the
annual meeting of the National Association of Medical
Examiners. Since then the Board has initiated discussions
with the medical examiner community on the many sensitive
identification issues associated with an aviation
disaster. Just recently the Board was able to provide
advice to the Canadian medical examiner responsible for
the identification of victims of Swissair Flight 111.
5. The Task Force
provided findings on the extent to which military experts and
facilities are used to aid in the recovery efforts and subsequent
identification efforts following an aviation disaster.
- The NTSB continues to
work with the Department of Defense (DOD) in recovery
efforts. The NTSB utilized DODs DNA capability for
the identification effort involving Korean Air Flight
801. The NTSB was also instrumental in assisting the
medical examiner tasked with the identification of
passengers of Swissair Flight 111 in obtaining DOD DNA
support, and assisted the Canadian Transportation Safety
Board in obtaining U.S. naval salvage support.
6. The Task Force issued
recommendations to ensure that state mental health licensing laws
do not act to prevent out-of-state mental health workers from
working at the site of an aviation disaster or other sites to
assist survivors, family members, and those involved in the
recovery effort.
- The U.S. House of
Representatives amended portions of the Family Assistance
Acts by adding language that prohibits actions by a state
or political subdivision thereof that would prevent
employees, agents, or volunteers of an organization
designated for an accident from providing mental health
and counseling services within a 30-day period after the
accident. In addition, language was added permitting the
designated director of family support services to extend
the period not to exceed an additional 30 days if the
director determines that the extension is necessary to
meet the needs of the families and if state and local
authorities are notified of the determination.
7. The Task Force issued
recommendations on methods to improve the treatment of families
by the legal community, including methods to ensure that
attorneys do not intrude on the privacy of families of passengers
involved in an aviation disaster.
- As a result of the
Task Force recommendations, the U.S. House of
Representatives amended portions of the Family Assistance
Act to extend the attorney direct solicitation provision
from 30 days to 45 days. In addition, the House extended
solicitation by an attorney to include solicitation by
any associate, agent, employee, or other representative
of the attorney.
- The Justice Department
prosecuted an aviation plaintiff attorney for violation
of the 30-day solicitation ban in the aftermath of the
Scenic Air aviation disaster in October 1997 outside of
Montrose, Colorado. James R. Lebovitz of the Cleveland,
Ohio law firm of Nurenberg, Plevin, Heller, and McCarthy,
represented himself and his firm as experts in aviation
law and sent a letter to a family member dated one week
after the accident in which he advocated hiring the firm
for legal representation. Secretary Slater and Chairman
Hall supported the Justice Departments decision to
prosecute, citing the Task Forces endorsement of
vigorously prosecuting violators of the solicitation
prohibition. The prosecution resulted in a settlement
comprised of an $8000 civil penalty and a letter from the
attorney to Chairman Hall acknowledging a violation of
Aviation Disaster Family Assistance Act, as well as a
commitment to future compliance with the Act. It is DOT
and NTSBs hope that enforcement of this legislation
will have a deterrent effect on other attorneys,
encouraging efforts of the plaintiff and defense bar to
police themselves in this delicate area.
8. The Task Force issued
recommendations on methods to ensure that representatives of
media organizations do not intrude on the privacy of families of
passengers involved in an aviation disaster.
- The NTSB addressed the
issue of protecting families from the media in the
"Federal Family Assistance Plan for Aviation
Disasters." Specifically, other than the media
releases by the airline on the progress of family
notification and release of passenger names, all media
inquiries and releases that pertain to the family support
operation will be referred to the NTSB family support
public affairs officer. The NTSB will advise and assist
the local medical examiner on any media affairs in his or
her area of responsibility. There are no restrictions on
victims or family members meeting with the media, if they
so desire.
- The Task Force
issued findings and recommendations on the availability
of information from cockpit voice recorders.
- Statutory law imposes
strict privacy constraints on the federal government
concerning the use of cockpit voice recorders. The NTSB
will be conducting a review of major airlines
policies and procedures governing the use of cockpit
voice recorders once they are returned to the owner.
10. The Task Force
issued recommendations concerning the NTSB "party
system" used during the accident investigation process.
- The RAND Institute of
Civil Justice is conducting a research study for the NTSB
focusing on the personnel and parties involved in an
accident investigation the "party
system." The goal of the study is to assure that the
central mission of the agency the independent
investigation of transportation accidents and the
issuance of recommendations to improve transportation
safety continues to be carried out with the
highest degree of public accountability, accuracy and
timeliness. As the TWA 800 investigation demonstrated,
NTSB accident investigations involve much more than an
agencys in-house work. In conducting a major
investigation, the NTSB leverages its resources by
designating other organizations as "parties to the
investigation" as a means of obtaining the necessary
technical or specialized knowledge that is critical to
the accident in question. RAND will examine the party
system since its inception, focusing on whether the
nature of investigations has changed over time, and, if
so, whether the changes have had a positive or a negative
impact on NTSB accident investigations.
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