Pilot error blamed for plane crash that killed 265 in US

THE co-pilot of American Airlines Flight 587 caused the November 2001 crash that claimed the lives of 265 people, staff at the US airline safety agency reported yesterday.

Investigator Robert Benzon of the National Transportation Safety Board’s staff said the co-pilot’s response to turbulence, just seconds after the Airbus A300-600 plane took off from New York’s John F Kennedy International Airport, was “unnecessary and aggressive”.

Benzon also said investigators found American Airlines improperly trained its pilots to use the aircraft’s rudder while recovering from upsets and said the problem could have been exacerbated by the airline’s simulator training.