Jet Crew Made Several Mistakes Before 2014 Crash

By TOM DAVIS (Patch Staff)

The crew in a 2014 jet crash in Bedford that killed seven people did not perform a pre-flight check and failed to disengage a safety mechanism just before before takeoff, according to the National Transportation Safety Board.

The NTSB announced the results Wednesday of the investigation into the May 2014 crash that killed Philadelphia Inquirer co-owner Lewis Katz and six others.

The NTSB said the crew’s failure to perform safety checklists caused the crash, and that the crew had a “long-term pattern” of failing to complete flight-control checklists, according to Vice Chairwoman T. Bella Dinh-Zarr’s opening statement in the accident review meeting.

The crew of the Gulfstream G-IV jet, which overran the runway and crashed, catching fire, also engaged a device that prevents control surfaces from moving when the jet is parked. But, the NTSB said in a video provided to the media, the crew did not disengage it, as it was supposed to do.

Late in the launch attempt, once trouble was discovered, “the throttle levers were pulled back and the pilot in command said ‘I can’t stop it,’ according to the NTSB video. ”The airplane exited the runway onto the paved overrun.”