enthalpy

Wednesday, June 08, 2005


Not every plane crash is the plane's fault, as this jury just decided.
Learjet should not be held responsible for the 1999 plane accident that killed golfer Payne Stewart, jurors said Wednesday.

His widow, Tracey, and their two children sued Learjet, claiming a cracked adapter caused an outflow valve to pull away from the plane's frame, resulting in a decompression and the escape of cabin air as the plane climbed to its flight altitude after leaving Orlando on Oct. 25, 1999. All communication with the plane was lost soon afterward and it flew on for hours, all aboard presumably unconscious, until it crashed in South Dakota.

The lawsuit had asked for $200 million.
In a just world, the widow would be forced to pay for Learjet's legal fees.



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