Will Reimburse The City For Legal Costs And Airport Repairs

Asiana Airlines has agreed to pay the City of San Francisco $3.45 million to cover legal costs and airport repairs associated with an accident involving an Asiana Airlines 777 in 2013.

There were three fatal injuries associated with the accident, which has been blamed on pilot mismanagement of the airplane.

The 777 clipped a seawall at the San Francisco Airport (KSFO) and impacted the runway, breaking the tail section off the airliner. A post-impact fire ensued. The airplane was evacuated, and 180 people were injured in the accident. The NTSB said that the flight crew had over-relied on automated systems aboard the aircraft, and had deactivated the autothrottle on the approach. That caused the approach to be too low and slow, and the tail of the airplane clipped the seawall. The board also said that the autothrottle was overly complicated and it was not adequately explained in training and operational manuals.

The San Francisco Examiner reports that the settlement was approved Tuesday in a unanimous vote by the city's Board of Supervisors. About $1.6 million will go towards airport damages, and $1.2 will go to legal fees. The airline must also compensate the city's aviation insurer, according to the report.

(NTSB image from file)

FMI: www.sfbos.org