Domestic Airline Crash Lawyers

Southwest Airlines airplane taking off at sunset

Domestic Airline Crash Lawyers

Kreindler is the Nation’s Preeminent Aviation Accident Law Firm

With the necessary resources to take on airlines and manufacturers, no other law firm anywhere in the United States can match Kreindler & Kreindler’s track record in aviation accident cases. 

Kreindler attorneys have handled aviation accident cases in every state in the country. Our partners have served as leading counsel in nearly every major airline disaster case since 1950, securing record amounts of compensation for victims and their families as well as promoting improvements to aviation industry safety standards, practices, laws, and regulations. Flying is safer today, due in no small part to the seventy-year legacy of Kreindler & Kreindler’s advocacy and tenacity following domestic and international aviation disasters

Visit our Aviation Accident page to learn more about our other aircraft accident practice areas.

Kreindler plaintiff attorneys have recovered record-setting amounts against airlines and aircraft builders who have been found liable. That liability is typically established through relentless investigation by Kreindler legal, technical and forensic specialists.

The First Law Firm to Prosecute a Commercial Aviation Crash Case

Lee Kriendler’s exhaustive legal efforts following the 1952 crash of a National Airlines DC-6 in Elizabeth, NJ set the groundwork for the practice of plaintiffs’ aviation accident law and established a work ethic that produced what today is considered the most successful and comprehensive aviation accident law firm in the world. In 2021, Kreindler continues its legacy as a world leader in the practice of plaintiffs’ aviation accident law. 

Headshot of partner and aviation accident attorney Brian Alexander.
We fight passionately for our clients and are relentless in our pursuit of justice.
~ Brian Alexander | Attorney and Partner

Kreindler commercial airline accident lawyers work to maintain our reputation as compassionate and effective advocates for victims and surviving families of aviation disasters. Kreindler has litigated thousands of airplane accident cases, successfully concluding personal injury and wrongful death claims against practically every major domestic and international airline.

Our past cases with domestic, commercial airline incidents include:

Partner Dan Rose speaks to Katy Tur on MSNBC about Southwest flight 1380
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Kreindler Aviation Litigation Approach and Experience

Our aviation accident lawyers have pursued liability and damages claims against Boeing and Airbus, the leading manufacturers of commercial aircraft, most major domestic airlines, and many smaller companies that produce the components and instruments used in long-range passenger airplanes. We are committed to achieving the largest recovery for our clients and holding those responsible for devastating losses and injury accountable.

Personalized Client Service, Focused on the Largest Possible Recovery

Of paramount importance to the victims and surviving families of air crashes is our firm’s ability to help clients move forward with their lives by delivering outstanding client service while working toward recovery of the greatest compensation possible under the facts of a given case.  

Commercial airline accidents with numerous victims are typically consolidated into a single multidistrict litigation (MDL) to make the process of handling such a complex case more efficient. Kreindler’s aviation attorneys are frequently appointed, often as chairperson, to serve on the plaintiffs’ steering committee that directs and coordinates the litigation as in the TWA flight 800 case. Our clients benefit in many ways including working with the lawyers who are leading the plaintiffs’ case against the manufacturer or airlines or product manufacturer.

Kreindler Partner Justin Green speaks to HLN's Carol Costello about Southwest 1380.
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When a commercial airliner goes down, as in the American Airlines flight 587 disaster, Kreindler often represents numerous families with claims related to the same accident. This is not class action litigation; we appoint a separate legal team to work directly with each client’s family. Each client receives the same level of attention and individualized service regardless of the number of clients we represent. 

Our law firm’s ability to provide individualized client service for people with claims related to the same accident also allows us to protect the value of a given claim by spreading litigation expenses among any number of case files, which results in greater recoveries for our clients.

A Force for Aviation Industry Safety 

Promoting aviation safety in manufacturing, maintenance and operations is a core tenet of our firm’s mission and values. Kreindler is known around the world for our skill and attention to detail in the investigation of air crashes. Kreindler’s ability to work effectively with investigators and forensic experts from many professions allows our attorneys to develop sound theories of causation under virtually any accident scenario. This capacity enables us to place liability where it belongs in an airline accident: the carrier, a maintenance contractor, the manufacturer, or a component supplier. The firm has repeatedly won precedent-setting cases and secured record damage recoveries for our clients.

Kreindler & Kreindler has also pioneered the legal concept of the aviation industry’s legal liability to compensate victims and their families for both the substantial physical and emotional “pain and suffering” resulting from an aviation accident or crash. In fact, Kreindler attorneys have written, edited and updated the essential legal treatise in this area, Aviation Accident Law (LexisNexis) since its initial publication in 1963. Kreindler attorneys also wrote and continue to edit the multi-volume treatise New York Law of Torts (West)

Unmatched Experience, Unparalleled Results

Given the complex challenges inherent in aviation accident litigation, a lawyer must be familiar with the minutiae of aviation law and have a consummate knowledge of highly technical issues, including:

  • Aerodynamics
  • Piloting
  • Engineering
  • Aircraft Maintenance
  • Airline Operations
  • Weather & Air Traffic Control Systems
  • Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Regulations
  • National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Procedure
  • U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Policies 

In each of these areas, the attorneys of Kreindler & Kreindler offer our clients multiple levels of technical knowledge and experience that’s matched only by the firm’s decades of precedent-setting success involving aviation cases. 

The Will to Win

Kreindler’s will to win drives every case we prosecute. We are exhaustive in our approach to case preparation, work tirelessly to investigate and uncover the truth, and are relentless in our pursuit of justice. 

Kreindler changed the way I thought about lawyers. They were about helping me and my family. I knew I was in the right hands.
~ David Spatola | Plane Crash Survivor

Whether it is a mass disaster with hundreds of victims or an individual aviation accident with one victim, Kreindler brings the same fight for justice, meticulous preparation, and commitment to every case that we accept.

Our partners and attorneys maintain the tradition of excellence that has been the firm’s hallmark for over 70 years and counting. The breadth and depth of our experience provide our clients with unique advantages that set Kreindler & Kreindler apart in the field of aviation accident law. 

Regional Airline Accidents Demand Experience

Airline accident damages claims against regional carriers

Takeoff and landing are two of the most dangerous stages of any flight. The great numbers of regional airlines that are flying shorter trips account for the largest share of accidents. 

Many major airlines find it more economical to fly the longer routes and outsource shorter flights to smaller regional carriers. Today, just about half of all commercial flights are operated by regional airlines with a lower cost structure, less experienced pilots, and continuing temptation to cut corners in safety, maintenance, and inspections. 

Kreindler attorneys have played important roles in two notable regional airline accidents - the Comair Flight 3272 and Continental Connection (Colgan) Flight 3407 disasters.

At Kreindler, our familiarity with the challenges of personal injury and wrongful death litigation related to smaller regional airlines can help victims and surviving families recover the compensation they need to help put their lives back together.