Not everyone agrees with the regional airlines’ assertion that they fly just as safely as their mainline counterparts. With this perception and several specific accidents in mind, the NTSB convened a symposium in late October to shed more light on airline code-sharing arrangements and their role in aviation safety.
Several recent NTSB investigations involved flights that were being operated under code-share agreements between smaller regional airlines and the larger, better-known major carriers. For example, the Feb. 12, 2009, accident near Buffalo, N.Y., involved Continental Connection Flight 3407, a flight actually operated by Colgan Air. Other investigations included the 2007 accident in Traverse City, Mich., in which a Northwest Airlink flight was operated by Pinnacle Airlines; the 2007 accident in Cleveland in which a Delta Connection flight was operated by Shuttle America; the 2006 accident in Lexington, Ky., in which a Delta Connection flight was operated by Comair; and the 2004 accident in Kirksville, Mo., in which an American Connection flight was operated by Corporate Airlines.
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