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<body> Partial List of Airliner Disasters Caused Or Enabled by Corruption and Cover-Ups The book, Unfriendly Skies: 20th & 21st Centuries, by former federal aviation safety agent Rodney Stich, is based upon government documents and what the author--a federal investigator holding key oversight responsibilities at United Airlines--and other inspectors, discovered. The documented pattern of hard-core misconduct within the FAA played a role in encouraging and insuring the success of the four groups of terrorist hijackers. The corrupt culture within the FAA was accompanied by refusal to order the simply changes reported by federal air safety inspectors that would have prevented the September 11 hijackings, and those for the prior 40 years, taking control of the aircraft. As a result of documented arrogance, corruption, and criminal acts, over 4,000 men, women, and children, were killed in a brutal manner, and brought about catastrophic financial and personal consequences, plus enormous threats to national security. The following fatal crashes were directly involved with the pattern of arrogance and documented air safety and criminal misconduct officially reported against United Airlines, records of which are in the author's possession. These corrupt acts, some of which are detailed and documented in the third edition of Unfriendly Skies, played a major causative and permissive role in the following crashes, among others: United Airlines DC-8 crash into the heart of New York City. This was the world's worst air disaster at that time, and for pain and suffering of the victims, it surely ranks at the top for gore and human suffering. Direct cause of the crash was the pilot's incredibly poor performance, which arose from the documented refusal by United Airlines personnel to provide legally required training and competency checks to its crewmembers, falsification of its safety records, threats upon federal air safety inspectors who sought report and take corrective actions on these matters. And much more. By pressuring FAA management to ignore these major safety violations, United Airlines management personnel played key roles in a 20-year-pattern of fatal crashes associated with these problems, and played a key role in the FAA culture. This culture resulted in FAA refusal to order the simple corrective actions that would have prevented many fatal airline crashes, including the September 11, 2001, terrorist hijackings that would have been prevented by ordering two simple corrective measures. The danger of fatal hijackings was obvious from their repetitive happenings, and as reported by federal air safety inspectors--including Rodney Stich--along with the simple corrective actions that by law FAA management were required to order. Ironically, the next airliner crash into New York City after the United DC-8 disaster occurred on September 11, 2001, made possible by the same corruption within the FAA and United Airlines. Another irony, key people at United Airlines had threatened the two inspectors seeking to correct the problems resulting in a series of air disasters. In this way they aided in the continuation of the corrupt culture within the FAA that would result in other United Airlines crashes--and the September 11, 2001, tragedies. United Airlines DC-8 crash at the Denver airport. (Many cremated alive.) Direct causes of the crash arose from refusal to perform legally required training and competency checks, felony falsification of federally required safety records, threats against inspectors by United Airlines and FAA management personnel, and other problems. United Airlines DC-8 crash near Salt Lake City. (Everyone killed.) Same problems. United Airlines Boeing 727 crash at the Salt Lake City airport. (Many cremated alive.) Direct causes of the crash arose from refusal to perform legally required training and competency checks, felony falsification of federally required safety records, threats against inspectors by United Airlines and FAA management personnel, and other problems. Much more was involved with this crash, and an entire book could be written just on that one crash. In addition to corruption by local personnel, there is the documented felony involvement by the FAA Administrator and staff, the National Transportation Safety Board, and the pre-crash cover-ups by members of Congress and various divisions of the U.S. Department of Justice. United Airlines Boeing 727 crash after takeoff from Los Angeles. (Everyone killed.) Same problems, combined with ignoring prior warnings that the failure by United Airlines to have a backup-power for flight instruments would result in the total loss of an aircraft, and the illegal departure with a non-functioning generator, combined with prior cover-ups involving the FAA Administrator and the NTSB board members. United Airlines DC-8 crash at Portland, Oregon. (Flight engineer and passengers killed.) Same problems with training and competency checks, combined with NTSB and FAA Administrator cover-ups. United Airlines crash at Midway Airport in Chicago. (All killed.) Same problems with training and competency checks. United Airlines crash into Lake Michigan. (All killed.) Caused by lack of altitude awareness that inspector Stich had previously reported and working on corrective actions, which were barred by FAA management who claimed there was no such problem. Same type of crash-causing problem as affecting American Airlines as it crashed during a night approach to Louisville, Kentucky during this same time period. And others as described in the books by former federal agent Rodney Stich. Safety Related Problems Continuing To the Present Day? In 1998, a United Airlines Boeing 747 came within 100 feet of ramming into Mount Bruno during a takeoff from San Francisco. The near-disaster, which would have been the worst single-aircraft disaster in the nation's history, was due to low experience level and in competency for that position. A Wall Street Journal investigative report indicated that this near-disaster had been preceded by several others. This indicates that the problems resulting in many prior fatal crashes at United Airlines still exists. Although this sounds unreal, but the loss of two United Airlines aircraft to terrorists on September 11, 2001, are ripple effects from the misconduct years earlier of certain people at United Airlines and a great number of people within the FAA. Both of these groups engaged in corrupt, and even criminal activities, as described in Unfriendly Skies: 20th and 21st Centuries, and the actions of both groups, reinforcing each other, effectively blocked competent federal safety agents from addressing the many safety problems, and blocked the implementation of measures that would have prevented numerous airline disasters―including the hijackings of 9/11. Due to the politics of air safety, the revolving door syndrome, personal rewards, a number of previously required safety equipment has been eliminated, with the expected heavy loss of life. For instance: Elimination of Smoke Detectors and Fire Fighting Equipment The elimination by FAA management personnel of the requirement for smoke detectors and fire extinguishing equipment in the cargo compartments of narrow-body jets such as the DC-8 and Boeing737 was done despite the fact that hazardous cargo always will be put in such compartments. Hazardous cargo is placed in such compartments either by accident or deliberately. Further, fires occur in such cargo compartments repeatedly on a world-wide basis. There have been numerous near-disasters from this elimination, but Valuejet is the most memorable example. The story behind the elimination of that safeguard and the reasons for that unsafe act is not known to anyone except insiders who know the culture in the FAA. Elimination Of Hard Backups For Flight Controls The elimination by FAA management personnel of the previously required hard backup for flight controls such as the horizontal stabilizer, required on such aircraft as the DC-8, Boeing 707, Lockheed 1011, has already resulted in over 1,000 deaths, and threatens anyone who flies. Hundreds of others came close to suffering the same fate as all but one hydraulic system failed. The elimination of the flight engineer on complex aircraft with hundreds of people on board reduces safety, places a greater load on the pilots, reduces the technical knowledge possessed by a competent flight engineer to detect, take corrective actions, and reduce the chance of a disaster. Approving two-engine operation over long water routes that in the event of an engine failure results in several hundred passengers relying upon a single engine to take them over 1500 miles to a landing--hoping that the weather in such inhospitable places as the North Atlantic does not do its common sudden change from CAVU to zero-zero. Related Web Sites Chronology of decades of corrupt activities by the CIA, U.S. politicians, and other members of the system, as described in the book, Defrauding America. Chronology of the arrogant and corrupt war on drugs--against the American people--as described in the book, Drugging America. Chronology of arrogant and corrupt activities in the deadly politics of aviation safety, as described in the book, Unfriendly Skies. List of print and e-books, some of which are available at no charge. Consider making your purchases of any item sold by or through amazon.com by going through the following links. This adds nothing to the cost, and helps fund out continuing efforts to expose corruption in the three branches of government. New Page 1 RETURN TO THE BEGINNING </body>