CHEEKTOWAGA, NY (AP) -- Family members of passengers killed in the crash of Continental Connection Flight 3407 were officially told Tuesday what they've long suspected: The flight could have been saved.
After a loss of speed surprised the crew of the Newark, N.J., to Buffalo trip last February, there was time to fix things.
In a hotel meeting room outside Buffalo, near where the flight was supposed to land, safety investigators told families there was no catastrophic mechanical failure. The weather played no role.
If the pilots had reacted correctly to the vibrating stick shaker that told Capt. Marvin Renslow and First Officer Rebecca Shaw they were in danger of stalling, the plane could have continued on to Buffalo Niagara International Airport just five miles away.
"I don't think it was a split second thing," Capt. Roger Cox told the National Transportation Safety Board in a Washington hearing simulcast in New York and New Jersey. "There was time to evaluate the situation and take action."
The report identified "multiple recovery scenarios."
"It's hard to hear," said Karen Wielinski, whose husband, Doug, died when the plane carrying 49 people crashed directly onto their house in the Buffalo suburb of Clarence. All on board died.
"This was totally avoidable," said Melissa Ersing, whose pregnant friend, Jennifer Neill, died in the crash. "Every day you think, what else could there possibly be? And every day, something else comes out that's just jaw-dropping."
National Transportation Safety Board investigators said Renslow pulled up on the controls when he should have pushed down to pick up speed. Shaw raised the flaps and landing gear, another wrong move.
"It's hard to get your arms around," said Sharon Green, whose husband, Brad, died on the flight. "How could neither one have had a grip on what's going on?"
Michael Monachino, wearing a picture of his late wife, Dawn, on his chest, believed the report's finding would legitimize the demands that family members have vigorously sought since the crash. They have voiced their desire to make flying safer, in part by having airlines hire better qualified pilots.
"If I'm strictly reacting from the gut reaction of losing my wife, then the reaction is, well, of course he's going to want this and this, whether it's warranted or not. He's looking at it from strictly an emotional point of view," Monachino said.
"By looking at the facts and saying my emotion is backed up by facts ... I think it's going to allow more people to look at the facts and decide whether or not they want to support changes in aviation safety," he said.
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