Airline Had Requested That Safety Audit Remain Sealed, Judge Disagreed

U.S. District Judge William M. Skretny has ordered that a safety audit that followed the Colgan Airlines flight 3407 accident in Buffalo, NY be unsealed over the objections of the airline.

The judge said that the investigation, commissioned by Colgan and conducted by Nick Sabatini & Associates, an Alexandria, VA consulting firm, could "at the least, lead to the discovery of admissible evidence” in lawsuits still pending from the accident. Colgan had argued that the findings would be "irrelevant" to the suits.

The Buffalo News reports that Judge Skrentny, chief judge for the Western District of New York U.S. District Court, said the safety culture of the airline was unlikely to have changed in the short time between the accident and the commissioning of the audit. The firm surveyed Colgan pilots and conducted follow-up interviews. It also reviewed training manuals and attended some training sessions.

Only five copies were distributed to airline executives, and they were not allowed to keep them. The airline also did not share the findings with the NTSB.

The airline is now part of Endeavour Air. No timeline for the release of the report was given.

FMI: www.nywd.uscourts.gov