FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Springfield, Massachusetts
5/10/01
Lawsuit alleges NTSB contravening its disclosure
obligation in TWA 800 investigation.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) responded to a Freedom
of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit with an unprecedented assertion that
it should not provide radar data that was used in its investigation of
the catastrophic explosion of TWA 800. The 4 year investigation could not
determine the cause of the explosion.
Graeme Sephton, an electrical engineer, filed the suit last year on
behalf of a group of independent researchers who have been studying the
accident for over three years.
The NTSB, established under US Code, Title 49, has an unequivocal statutory
obligation "to provide (such) data on request". By flouting that law and
the FOI Act, the NTSB is perpetuating the appearance of a cover-up in relation
to its TWA 800 investigation. The NTSB is insisting that the public should
settle for its edited versions of the original data. They demand total
trust in their competence. This despite the fact that, a month after this
research group filed a FOIA request for all the radar data, the NTSB announced
that they had "overlooked" important altitude data. It was very significant
because it was for that period of time when the aircraft ceased reporting
its altitude via transponder. They had overlooked this data for over 3
years!
The mystery of this tragedy is now being compounded by the mystery of
the NTSB's unauthorized withholding of data. This devious behavior undermines
public confidence and the credibility of the NTSB. Even participants
in the official investigation complained about the NTSB withholding data.
The final reports to the NTSB of the Airline Pilots Association (ALPA)
and also of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers
both protested the NTSB's failure to share essential information even within
the investigation. Reference: http://www.twa800.com "Reports Section"
If Federal Judge Freedman rules in favor of the NTSB, the Title 49 public
rights to accessible and credible safety research data will be undermined.
His ruling is expected any day now. The right-to-know of journalists, aviation
interests, independent researchers and the public-at-large presently hangs
in the balance.
Contact:
Graeme Sephton
sephton@admin.umass.edu
http://www.flight800.org
