MONTGOMERY, Alabama — More information is coming to light nearly two years after an airline worker was killed at the Montgomery Regional Airport after being sucked into a jet engine.
The National Transportation Safety Board, or NTSB, is releasing its final report on the incident that led to the death of Courtney Nichelle Edwards, who died on December 31, 2022. Edwards, 34, who was employed as a ramp agent by American Airlines subsidiary Piedmont Airlines, died after she got too close to the plane’s running engine and was subsequently ingested.
According to the NTSB’s final report, probable cause was found of “cognitive impairment,” noting that Edwards suffered from health issues that could have impacted her judgement.
The report states that:
“The accident ramp agent’s behavior at the time of the accident demonstrated that her judgment was deficient. Given her identified medical and toxicological cognitive risk factors, the ramp agent’s deficient judgment was likely due to cognitive impairment. The extent to which individual cognitive risk factors, such as the ramp agent’s multiple sclerosis and cannabis use, contributed to this impairment could not be determined based on the available evidence. ”NTSB final report page 3 of 15
The report also notes that Edwards took part in a safety “huddle” 10 minutes before the fatal incident, which addressed safety around the engine. Just prior to the deadly incident, Edwards was seen on video going to the airplane’s tail to put down a safety cone at which point she stumbled after approaching the jet-blast area behind the engine. She also failed to place a safety cone at the wingtip, which was part of her responsibilities. The video then showed Edwards walking directly in front of the engine while there were signals to indicate dangers were still active.
The NTSB report also discusses a post accident interview with the lead ramp agent that states:
According to a post accident interview with the lead ramp agent, on the day of the accident, the accident ramp agent was expected to place a safety cone at the left wingtip, walk to the tail of the airplane and place another safety cone there, and then continue around the tail to the right side of the fuselage to assist with baggage unloading. The lead ramp agent stated that, after he set the chocks on the nosewheel of the airplane, he observed the accident ramp agent about to set the safety cone at the airplane tail while the No.1 engine was still operating. He yelled at and motioned for her to move away from the airplane. She began to move away from the airplane, and he turned away so that he could operate the ground power cord. Shortly thereafter, he heard a “bang” and noticed that the left engine had shut down. The lead ramp agent stated that none of the accident ramp agent’s duties would have required her to be on the left side of the airplane in front of or near the No. 1 engine.”NTSB final report page 6 of 15
There were 63 passengers and crew aboard the plane at the time of the incident.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration, or OSHA, released its own findings in a final report in June 2023.
