Jet Underinsured For Crash, Lawyer Says

A wing tip of the Embraer was sheared off, but it managed to land. The Boeing 737 airliner crashed killing all aboard.

According to the law firm, investigators said the $25 million Legacy was on its maiden voyage heading to the United States from the southern city of S?o Jos? dos Campos in Brazil when the accident occurred at 37,000 feet, an altitude usually reserved for flights headed in the opposite direction.

The crash drew an additional measure of publicity after Joe Sharkey, a New York Times reporter who was a passenger on the Embraer, published a gripping account of the collision. The pilots were held by Brazilian authorities for 71 days before they were released.

Mr. Marks in a statement said that "a series of mistakes led to this tragedy."

The lawsuits, naming the Legacy's owner, ExcelAire, and its two pilots Joseph Lepore and Jan Paladino of New York, list a failure to maintain proper altitude and proper communication with Brazilian traffic controllers as causes of the crash.

"ExcelAire's pilots flew at an improper altitude directly in contravention of their filed flight plan and international safety regulations," said Mr. Marks. "In addition, the pilots also failed to properly operate the Legacy's transponder, which could have helped avoid this crash in the first place," Mr. Marks said.

Ricardo Martinez-Cid, another attorney with the law firm, said ExcelAire, was named as a defendant in the suits because it owns the aircraft and is legally liable for the negligence of its operation. The lawsuits also name Morristown, N.J.-based Honeywell International Inc.

According to the suit, Honeywell manufactured the plane's transponder, which was defective.

The suit names the Legacy's manufacturer, Embraer, with its U.S. office in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., for including the transponder in the aircraft.

Bill Reavis a Honeywell corporate spokesperson said, "Honeywell is unaware of any evidence that its equipment was defective or had malfunctioned in any way. The company will vigorously defend itself in this matter."

Also listed as defendants are Coral Gables, Fla.-based Amazon Technologies Company, Bethesda, Md.-based Lockheed Martin Corp. and Raytheon, for their design and implementation of the air traffic control system known as the System for the Vigilance of the Amazon.

SIVAM, Mr. Martinez-Cid explained, "was defective and left vast stretches of the Amazon, including where this accident occurred, without adequate radar and communication services."

"This accident might have been avoided if air traffic controllers had not lost communication with the pilots," he said.

The suits seek personal injury damages for the crash victims and survivors, as well as economic reparations for those who perished, Podhurst Orseck said.

No dollar figure was listed, but "each family's loss is in the millions."

USAIG confirmed that it insured ExcelAire, but said it could not comment on policy limits. ExcelAire did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Robert Torricella Jr., the Miami attorney representing the pilots, said his firm is reviewing the lawsuits and "will respond at the appropriate time and the appropriate forum."