Complaint Alleges Chalk's Airways Was Aware of Corrosion That Led to Disaster

Long before a final cause will be issued by the NTSB, and well before an investigation has any chance of being completed, aero-litigators Motley Rice are making charges... and filing law suits.

But then again, that's aero-litigators do... sigh.

Still immodestly naming itself as "one of the largest aviation litigation firms in the US," Motley Rice LLC, has filed a $100,000,000 suit against Flying Boats Inc., operating under the name Chalk's Airlines Inc., and its owner James Confalone, on behalf of the family of Michele Marks, pilot in the fatal crash of Chalk's Airlines Flight 101, which took place on December 19, 2005 off the coast of Miami, Florida.

The 58 year-old twin-engine Grumman G-73T seaplane was originally manufactured in 1947, and en route from Miami to the Bahamian island of Bimini at the time of the crash. Shortly after the plane took off from Chalk's Watson's Island seaplane base, the right wing separated from the airframe and a fatal accident ensued in the federal waterway, Government Cut, entry to the Port of Miami.

Motley-Rice claims that, "A post-crash investigation revealed that the right wing separated near where the wing connected to the fuselage, and that there was visible evidence of fatigue cracking and corrosion on the wing spar. Motley Rice investigators have also discovered that in 1991 the plane was found to have light corrosion on the right wing. Despite the discovery of corrosion on the wing spar 15 years ago, it is alleged that the aircraft was not properly inspected, maintained, repaired, overhauled or removed from service and replaced with more airworthy aircraft."

And Yes, Mary Schiavo Has Something To Say About This Crash, Too

"Chalk's Airlines had a duty to its employees and its passengers to undertake the highest degree of care to keep its planes airworthy and safe. Clearly they fell short of this duty," stated Motley Rice attorney and former U.S. Inspector General for the Department of Transportation in Washington, D.C., Mary Schiavo. "When you're operating a 58 year-old aircraft it is imperative that a rigorous aging aircraft inspection and maintenance program is followed. Old airplanes are such a risk that the aviation industry even has a term for them - 'tired iron.' This tired iron should have been retired."

Motley Rice attorney Marlon Kimpson agreed, stating, "I am especially outraged because so many of the victims in this and other 'tired iron' crashes are minorities and people of modest means. It is unfortunate that we have a 'trickle down' aviation industry - allowing old planes to trickle down to those who have no alternatives for better transportation."

Motley Rice's Florida aviation attorney, J.B. Harris added, "It's been reported that South Florida is particularly vulnerable to lax inspection, shoddy maintenance and suspect aircraft parts. Particularly suspect is Mr. Confalone's ownership interest in certain airline parts and maintenance suppliers which may have provided parts and maintenance to the doomed aircraft. With this litigation, we aim to get to the bottom of this deadly malaise."

This case was filed in Circuit Court in Miami-Dade County, Florida and included the following defendants (all owned by Chalk's owner James Confalone): Chalk's Airlines, Inc., Flying Boat, Inc., Flying Boat Parts, Inc., Seaplane Adventures, LLC, K & J Aircraft Parts, Inc., Bimini Landing, Inc., Florida Air Shuttle, Inc., Okeechobee Jet Center, Inc., Seaplane Leasing, I, LLC, Seaplane Leasing II, LLC, Seaplane Leasing III, LLLC, Seaplane Leasing IV, LLC, Seaplane Leasing V, LLC, Seaplane Leasing VI, LLC, The Airport, Inc., The Charge Station, Inc., The Fuel Farm, Inc., The Oil Change, Inc., The Shuttle, Inc., U.S. Distributors, Inc., Worldwide Aviation Distributors, Inc., Dean H. Franklin Aviation Enterprises, Inc., and James H. Confalone, individually.

E-I-C Note (Opinion): ANN takes great exception with Atty Kimpson's comments about race... we have yet to see a case of suspected metal fatigue that was, in any way, related to the race, economic status, creed, color, national origin or other characteristics of those temporarily within such structures. We fail to see the relevance of such data to the investigation or to any potential probable cause. The reason such an older airframe may have been in service probably has more to do with the fact there are no new Turbine Mallards to be had, than anything else.

This was a tragedy -- and yes, there is evidence to suggest that fatigue may have been a factor. However; there is an investigation underway by the best experts in the field, which should offer more than sufficient evidence (when completed) as to what happened. We strongly doubt that any mention of the race or economic status of those tragically lost in this crash will play any role in the final determination reached by the NTSB... but we're willing to wait for their final report, just in case.--Jim Campbell, ANN E-I-C

FMI: http://aviation.motleyrice.com