The weekend remembrance of the crash of Comair 5191 a decade ago offers an opportunity to reflect on safety improvements at Lexington’s Blue Grass Airport. Revised safety measures include airstrip and communication changes.
Just after 6:00 a.m. on August 27th, 2006 the Comair plane took off from the wrong runway, crashing and killing 49 of the 50 occupants. In addition to concerns about pavement markings and runway crossings, communications were also cited as factors.
Blue Grass Airport Director Eric Frankl says cockpit crews today must stop at the end of a runway before takeoff. “The tower used to be able to say you can taxi from the ramp and go ahead and take the runway. Now, you can’t do that. In other words, that could be quite a bit of time between the time they left the ramp til they get to the end of the runway,” explained Frankl.
Frankl says signage or markings on the pavement have also changed since August of 2006. He says former National Transportation Safety Board Chair Debra Hersman noted during the weekend memorial service that 200 people die a day on American highways. Frankl says the airline industry is safe, adding it’s the right combination of unusual circumstances that lead to accidents
