Press Releases

Flight 3407 Families Achieve Final Milestone as Pilot Record Database is Finalized

Commend FAA, DOT, Biden Administration for Pushing Project Over the Finish Line

Buffalo, New York – May 27, 2021 – Twelve years after showing up in Washington for the initial National Transportation Safety Board hearing into the crash and making the first of what would become over seventy-five trips to Washington, the ‘Families of Continental Flight 3407’ at long last achieved closure with the finalization of the pilot record database, the last remaining initiative to be implemented from the landmark 2010 aviation safety legislation that Congress passed as a result of the crash.  The group thanked the executive agencies who worked on the project, as well as their advocates in Congress and the aviation sector who fought alongside them for over a decade, and reflected on the memories of their loved ones who were lost in the crash.

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Flight 3407 Families Express Concern over Regional Airline Oversight in Wake of Report on Envoy Air Incidents

Call on Biden Administration to Increase Scrutiny of Regionals, Finalize Pilot Record Database

Buffalo, New York – May 20, 2021 – In response to a CNN report detailing Envoy Air, American Airlines’ largest regional carrier, receiving a safety warning from the Federal Aviation Administration addressing 9 separate safety incidents in 2019 and 2020, the ‘Families of Continental Flight 3407’ called on the Biden administration and Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg to step up its vigilance of all regional carriers in the United States.  The group also challenged the administration to finalize the rulemaking on the long-overdue Pilot Record Database, which has now been nearly 10 years in the making.

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Flight 3407 Families’ Statement on the 12th Anniversary of the Crash

Call on Biden Administration and Buttigieg to Step Up on Pilot Record Database

Buffalo, New York – February 12, 2021 – Beth Ann.  Clay.  Darren.  Susan.  Donald.  Dawn.  Shawn.  Ferris.  Ronald.  Brad.​
These were not just names.  They were family.  Co-workers.  Classmates.  Neighbors.  Friends.  Doers.  Achievers.  Difference-makers.  And they were tragically taken from us 12 years ago, much too early.

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In Advance of Inauguration and Buttigieg Confirmation, Flight 3407 Families Call on Biden Administration to Put Safety First and Finalize Pilot Record Database

Buffalo, New York – January 20, 2021 – With Joe Biden set to be sworn in as the 46th President of the United States, and the Senate Commerce Committee scheduled to hold a confirmation hearing on former South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg to be Secretary of Transportation on Thursday, the ‘Families of Continental Flight 3407’ issued an urgent plea for the new administration to commit to prioritizing the safety of the American traveling public.

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Flight 3407 Families Commemorate 10th Anniversary of Airline Safety Act Being Signed Into Law

Ushered in Unprecedented Era of Aviation Safety; Pilot Record Database All That Remains to Be Finalized

Buffalo, New York – July 29, 2020 – Saturday, August 1st, 2020 will mark the 10th anniversary of President Barack Obama signing Public Law 111-216, ‘The Airline Safety and Federal Aviation Administration Extension Act of 2010’ into law.  The bill was unanimously approved by Congress, passing the House of Representatives by voice vote and the Senate by unanimous consent.  The results of the law speak for themselves; new rules aimed at regional airline safety have been implemented addressing first officer qualification requirements, pilot fatigue, safety management systems, and pilot training and professionalism, and there has not been a fatal commercial airline crash on a U.S. carrier since the tragedy of Flight 3407 in February 2009.  The only provision of the law remaining to be implemented requires the creation of a comprehensive electronic pilot record database to be used by carriers as a tool in the hiring process.  In conjunction with the anniversary, the ‘Families of Continental Flight 3407’ issue the following statement: 

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NTSB Finds FAA’s Failure to Meet Deadline on Pilot Records Database Led to Atlas Crash

Flight 3407 Families Call for Swift Completion of Final Rule, No Caving to Stakeholder Pressure

Buffalo, New York – July 15, 2020 – The ‘Families of Continental Flight 3407’ responded swiftly to Tuesday’s public board meeting of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) on the February 2019 Atlas Air cargo crash, which determined that slipshod aviation industry hiring practices and repeated delays by the Department of Transportation (DOT) and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in implementing a pilot records database mandated by a 2010 safety law contributed to the fatal crash.  The group highlighted the NTSB’s findings (https://www.ntsb.gov/news/press-releases/Pages/NR20200714.aspx) and called on Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao and FAA Administrator Stephen Dickson to lead their agencies to a prompt completion of the rulemaking project for the database, currently targeted for September 30th, 90 days after the June 30th close of the public comment period on the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM).

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Flight 3407 Families Cite Atlas Air Crash in Calling on Chao, Dickson to Finalize Pilot Database

Comment Period Closed Monday on Notice of Proposed Rulemaking

Buffalo, New York – July 1, 2020 – With Monday’s closing of the comment period for the Federal Aviation Administration’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on the Pilot Record Database, the ‘Families of Continental Flight 3407’ submitted their group’s comment and called on Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao and FAA Administrator Stephen Dickson to move quickly to finalize the rule and start the clock on bringing the industry into full compliance with it.  The group cited the National Transportation Safety Board’s December release of information from its investigation of the fatal Atlas Air/Amazon cargo crash back in February 2019 which revealed that the first officer was hired by Atlas without a full review of his previous training record, which included multiple failures and washouts at three regional carriers (https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-air-atlas-crash-pilot-unsafe-ntsb-2019-12).

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Flight 3407 Families Applaud Final Rule on Pilot Professional Development

Will Work Hand-in-Hand with Enhanced First Officer Standards; Pilot Database is Final Milestone Remaining from Safety Law

Buffalo, New York – February 25, 2020 – The ‘Families of Continental Flight 3407’ recognized the Federal Aviation Administration’s release of a final rule on ‘Pilot Professional Development’. The rule was mandated by the ‘Airline Safety and Federal Aviation Administration Extension Act of 2010,’ and marks another step towards full implementation of the law.

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Flight 3407 Families Remember Their Loved Ones and 737 MAX Victims on 11th Anniversary

Buffalo, New York – February 12, 2020 – Wednesday, February 12th, 2020 will mark the 11th anniversary of the tragic regional airline crash of Continental Flight 3407 operated by Colgan Air that took the lives of all on board and one man on the ground. It will also mark 11 years without any fatal crashes of U.S. commercial flights, the safest such period in our nation’s aviation history (previously, the U.S. had never gone more than thirty consecutive months without a fatal crash). This is a testament to the efforts of so many, and a powerful tribute to those who were needlessly lost. In conjunction with the anniversary, the ‘Families of Continental Flight 3407’ issue the following statement:

Another year has passed. We continue to struggle with the elusive ‘new normal’. There are old photos, boxes of newspaper clippings, old clothes, and other mementos. Memories of sights and sounds and smells that we hold near and dear to our hearts, that we fight to keep from fading away as time marches on.

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Flight 3407 Families Mark Big Week in Washington

Press DOT/FAA on Database, Applaud Tough Questioning of Dickson, Remain Focused on FAA Oversight

Buffalo, New York – May 22, 2019 – Over ten years removed from the regional airline crash that tragically took the lives of their loved ones, the ‘Families of Continental Flight 3407’ continued their aviation safety advocacy in Washington last week by attending two congressional hearings, including the Senate confirmation hearing for Stephen Dickson to be FAA Administrator. The group also highlighted a bipartisan House letter to Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao and Acting FAA Administrator Daniel Elwell addressing continued delays in the Pilot Records Database, led by the Western New York House delegation and signed by members representing ten different states. (more…)

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