Investigation of the Crash of ValuJet Flight 592, the Relevant Stakeholders, Crisis System, and

Crisis MechanismsMatt Williams

Dr. PetkovLAC 130

Background

• May 11, 1996• ValuJet flight 592 transporting 105 passengers

and 5 crew members from Miami, Florida to Atlanta, Georgia

• Shortly after takeoff, the McDonnell Douglas DC-9-32 crashed into the Florida Everglades

• Resulted in the deaths of all 110 passengers aboard the aircraft

Background (cont.)

• Caused by a fire that started in the cargo area of the aircraft• The fire was ignited by oxygen generators• The oxygen tanks were the responsibility of SabreTech,

ValuJet’s maintenance contractor• They were loaded onto the plane in five large boxes and

labeled as COM (Company-Owned Material)• The required warnings for shipping hazardous materials

were not on the boxes• The shipping ticket said that the canisters were empty• Some of the oxygen generators lacked safety caps for the

firing pins

Background (cont.)

• ValuJet failed to properly supervise the loading of cargo onto their aircraft

• The airline assumed no responsibility for the crash• They were grounded by the Federal Aviation

Administration for three months• ValuJet was forced to lay off employees and make

pay cuts • They faced many lawsuits against the families of

the victims

Background (cont.)

• SabreTech was responsible for mislabeling and misrepresenting the oxygen generators

• The implications of the containers being labeled as “empty” were that they were harmless

• Also, ValuJet wasn’t qualified to transport oxygen in the first place, as it is classified as a hazardous chemical

• Along with the lawsuits they faced, SabreTech faced criminal charges, a $2 million fine, and $9 million in restitution

Relevant Stakeholders

• Victims of the crash• Friends and family of victims• ValuJet• SabreTech• Federal Aviation Administration• Millions of people who vested interest in the

crisis

ValuJet Before the Crash

• Extremely low budget• Flights cost immensely less than competition• Outsourced maintenance to cheap repair

places, rather than having their own facilities and mechanics

• More accidents and emergency landings than other airlines

• Low quality flight experience

Changes in Crisis System

• In 1998, the Federal Aviation Administration issued new standards that increased both the detection and suppression of fire in cargo areas

• ValuJet merged with AirTran Airways and kept the AirTran name

Works Cited

• FISHMAN, D. 1999. ValuJet Flight 592: Crisis Communication Theory Blended and Extended. Communication Quarterly. 47(Fall) 345-375

• MACNEAL, E. 1997. Fatal Words. Et Cetera. (Spring)

• ENGLEHARDT, K. 2004. Compassion Without Blame: Testing the Accident Decision Flow Chart With the Crash of ValuJet Flight 592. Journal of Public Relations Research. 16(2) 127-156