We Should Know Probable Cause In A Month

The National Transportation Safety Board will meet in Washington on Tuesday, October 26, 2004, to consider a final report on its investigation into the crash of American Airlines Flight 587. The meeting will begin at 9:30 and is expected to last most of the day.

The Board will be meeting in open session with its investigators as it deliberates over the draft report. The public is invited to observe the proceedings; there is no public participation in the meeting. At the end of the meeting, the Board is expected to adopt the report, as edited during the meeting, which will include conclusions, a probable cause and safety recommendations.

On November 12, 2001, American Airlines Flight 587, an Airbus A-300-600, crashed minutes after takeoff from New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport, killing all 260 people on the aircraft and five more on the ground. The aircraft was on a scheduled flight to the Dominican Republic.

The flight crew aboard the aircraft came under scrutiny early in the investigation. The flight recorders indicated a series of sharp rudder movements just before the vertical stabilizer detached from the aircraft.

NTSB Chairman Ellen Engleman Conners said the investigation was complete and, as far as findings are concerned, "we're very close." She would not, however, indicate what the investigation turned up.

FMI: www.ntsb.gov