Follows NTSB Report Showing High Accident Rate In The State

After a report released by the NTSB showing that Alaska has an accident rate that is about double that of the rest of the country, Grant Aviation has filed a lawsuit against Serco, Inc., a Virginia-based company that employs air traffic controllers in Bethel, AK, saying Serco is responsible for an accident involving one of Grant's airplanes in July of last year.

In that accident, A Cessna 208B belonging to Grant went down on the runway at Bethel and caught fire. While the five passengers and pilot suffered only minor injuries, the company says the plane went down when the pilot followed instructions given by the air traffic controller, according to a report from Alaska Public Media.

According to the NTSB preliminary report the pilot was executing a go-around maneuver when he was instructed by the controller to "turn left immediately." The pilot did so, and the aircraft stalled and impacted terrain. The pilot noticed the fire and was able to evacuate the passengers.

The complaint holds that Serco did not properly train its employees to manage the volume of traffic at the airport. The court documents point to the controllers abrupt command as proof of that negligence.

(Image from file. Not accident airplane)

FMI: Source report