While the release of the long-awaited official investigation report of the January 25, 2010 Ethiopian Airlines Flight 409 disaster has been indefinitely delayed, an international partnership of aviation law firms conducting a separate investigation reports that substantial progress has been made in attempting to determine the cause of the accident. The Boeing 737-800 was bound for Addis Ababa from Beirut when it crashed into the Mediterranean Sea shortly after takeoff, killing all 90 passengers and crew.
The international partnership includes the San Francisco-area law firm of O'Reilly Collins and the highly regarded London-based law firm, Stewarts Law, LLP. Both firms are combining their extensive aviation investigation experience and technical knowledge to analyze the potential causes of the crash, including discussions with aviation experts recreating the ET409 flight in a Boeing 737-800 simulator.
Recently, members of both firms convened in Beirut to update clients on recent developments and to discuss strategy on the case. Members also spoke with officials from Ethiopian Air Lines. Among the team of top international aviation law experts present was Terry O'Reilly of O'Reilly Collins, James Healy Pratt of Stewarts Law, and local Beirut counsel Nabil Abou Jaoudé. In addition to the efforts in Beirut, discussions have been underway with Lloyds of London and other insurers into resolving ET409 claims as quickly as possible.
Terry O'Reilly noted that while ET409 is a complex case with several possible factors for the crash, the disaster bears many of the hallmarks of the Kenya Airways Flight 507 disaster. That Boeing 737-800 departed from Douala, Cameroon, bound for Nairobi, Kenya, when it crashed shortly after takeoff. Malfunctioning autopilot was suspected in KQ507, although much of the wreckage was destroyed before a thorough investigation could be completed.
There are still several theories surrounding ET409, including bad weather and terrorism. One of the theories currently discussed in news reports is pilot error. However, recent investigation into pilot recovery of malfunctioning aircraft has shown that more than just pilot error must have been at work with ET409. Numerous tests into pilot response, including the blindfolding of pilots in a simulator, have determined that it is possible to regain control of a Boeing 737-800 within approximately 2,000 feet (0.6 kilometers) of elevation from the first malfunction. ET409 was at approximately 9000 feet (2.7 kilometers) when it went out of control, giving the ET409 pilots considerable room to regain control.
