Southwest Flight 2294 – Williams Law Group Investigates the Near Tragic Event
Southwest flight 2294 was traveling from Nashville, TN to Baltimore, MD when the passengers were forced to experience a life-changing event. The Boeing 737-300 made an emergence landing in Charleston, WV after an explosive and sudden decompression of the cabin while at 34,000 feet. This sudden cabin decompression was caused when the fuselage ripped open forming a 17 inch hole near the rear of the airplane.
Passengers reported that following an explosion like sound, the air masks were deployed and the crew told the passengers that they were too far from an airport to make it and to prepare for a crash landing. While making a “diving descent,” and enduring “a very loud deafening sound” passengers were terrified to look out the windows to see nothing but the mountains of West Virginia below.
Fuselage Inspections Were a Known Problem With Southwest Airlines
The primary means for early detecting problems with soundness of the body or “fuselage” of an aircraft is by careful and detailed inspections. The FAA fined Southwest $10.2 million in 2008, after regulators determined that the airline had knowingly flown 46 jets that were overdue for fuselage inspections. Six of the 46 jets were found to have cracks in their fuselages. These inspections were and are today required by a 2004 Federal Aviation Regulation.
Our investigation into the matter will focus on the adequacy, extent and frequency of Southwest’s fuselage inspections. The initial opinion formed by most experts in the industry is that this near miss of a tragic event could have been avoided with proper inspections of this aircraft.
About the Aviation Attorneys at The Williams Law Group
After a commercial aviation incident such as this, our aviation lawyers are fully prepared to conduct the most thorough investigation possible into the cause of this event and determine how these mistakes can be avoided in the future.
Investigating and determining the causes of a commercial airline near tragic event, is a detailed, technical, and time-intensive process involving the National Transportation Safety Board, the Federal Aviation Administration, and independent investigators working on behalf of the various affected groups, including the passengers, their families, the airlines, and the aircraft manufacturers.
Attorney B. Keith Williams is a board certified Civil Trial Specialist with a focus on Tennessee aviation accident cases. His firm, The Williams Law Group, has offices located in Nashville and Lebanon, Tennessee. If you, a family member or other loved one was on board Southwest Flight 2294 and would like to speak with an experienced aviation attorney, please call or click to speak directly with B. Keith Williams.
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