AMERICAN EAGLE FLIGHT 4184
Crashed: October 31, 1994, in Roselawn, Indiana
On October 31, 1994, American Eagle Flight 4184 was en route from Indianapolis, Indiana, to Chicago, Illinois when it abruptly rolled and plummeted from the sky, crashing in a field near Roselawn, Indiana, killing all 68 on board. In the following investigation, it was determined that an inattentive flight crew and a poorly designed de-icing boot system caused the American Airlines plane to crash during an ice storm.
That cold, rainy night, winds were blowing 30 miles per hour. American Eagle Flight 4184 was circling 9,000 feet above Northwest Indiana waiting to land at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport. Twice, the pilots had warned air traffic controllers that freezing drizzle was coating the wings with ice. While the 30-year-old co-pilot was struggling with the ice build-up, the 29-year-old pilot was out of the cockpit.
“Aw, [expletive],” were the last words of the co-pilot before a crunch sound ended the cockpit voice recording. The crash raised extensive questions about the safety of the plane, systematic flaws, hazardous weather conditions, and what safety precautions could have prevented the incident.
The tragic crash of Flight 4184 was the devastating culmination of a long history of icing incidents and fatal accidents involving ATR turboprop airplanes. The National Transportation Safety Board’s (NTSB) thorough investigation into Flight 4184 and previous ATR icing incidents and crashes exposed a pattern of the airplane manufacturer prioritizing sales over safety. This included adopting overly aggressive design and marketing strategies, such as a lateral control system that sacrificed stability for the sake of competitiveness.
Chicago aviation attorney Robert A. Clifford represented the families of 16 passengers on American Eagle Flight 4184. On the first day of trial, he entered the federal courtroom in Chicago, prepared to make his opening statement to the jury that had been selected over the previous two days. A screen was set up for the jurors to view elaborate digital presentations that would explain the case and show previous testimony of the dozens of witnesses whose earlier depositions had been videotaped in preparation for trial. The jurors also were to view day-in-the-life videos that Mr. Clifford had produced on each of the 16 passengers who had lost their lives. Mr. Clifford had hired a professional videographer to capture, through family photos and videos as well as interviews, the lives of each one of the victims he represented who were killed in the tragedy.
As the trial was set to begin, the defendants agreed to a record $110 million settlement and an unprecedented apology from both ATR and American Airlines in open court. The airline assured
those in the courtroom that as much as possible had been done to correct the problems that they believed caused the crash and the lawyer for American Airlines told the families, “We are terribly sorry that this happened.” The families distributed the money in confidential settlements. For a week, settlement talks continued, even into the weekend. In the end, the jurors were thanked for their patience and were dismissed.
The NTSB report also concluded that the makers of the French-built ATR-72 turboprop had failed to adequately report previous problems encountered by its planes in icy conditions which led to the grounding of the ATR fleet in the U.S. and elsewhere. Its report also faulted the French Directorate General for Civil Aviation for failing to oversee the manufacturer and for failure to inform the Federal Aviation Administration about the airworthiness of the ATR planes operating in icy conditions but also cited the FAA’s failure to exert proper authority over the aircraft’s maker as well. Robert Clifford and Kevin Durkin led the Plaintiffs’ Discovery Committee unearthing these critical facts. The NTSB urged tighter regulations on flights by commuter aircraft in icing conditions in 1996.