Alaska Airlines flight attendants file claim over air-turbulence injuries

Two Alaska Airlines flight attendants who were injured when a 2007 flight from Seattle to California encountered turbulent air have filed a legal claim against a national weather-forecasting service and against the U.S. government.

Donna Dacko and Inga Isakson were working on the flight to Ontario, Calif., on Dec. 25, 2007, when the aircraft hit "previously unreported severe turbulence" before landing, according to the claim filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Seattle.

Isakson slammed her head against a metal chair arm and on a metal frame beneath a passenger seat, according to the claim. It says she lost consciousness, that a pool of blood surrounded her head and she was seen "frothing at the mouth."

Dacko hit her head on the ceiling of the aircraft and was thrown for at least six rows of seats, landing on Isakson, the claim said.

The claim is a precursor to a lawsuit.

Both women were hospitalized in California. Dacko has undergone several surgeries and remains injured, the claim said.

Dacko and Isakson, in their claim, say that Weather Service International (WSI) was negligent in forecasting the weather. The women were not made aware of any "hazardous weather" forecast for the flight route, the claim said.

They also named the U.S. government in the claim because, they contend, the Federal Aviation Administration's Office of Air Traffic Organization should have warned them about the severe weather.

"These injuries were entirely preventable," said aviation attorney Alisa Brodkowitz, who is representing both women. "No one, neither the crew nor the passengers, should have experienced this horrific event."

The claim was filed now because of an apparent statute of limitations that expires Dec. 25, Brodkowitz said.

A spokeswoman for WSI, based in Massachusetts, declined to comment on the case Friday. Emily Langlie, spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's Office, also declined to comment.

Marianne Lindsey, a spokeswoman for Alaska Airlines, said the company was not aware of the legal claim.

Aviation expert John Nance said he has never heard of a case similar to this.

"For a suit like this to be successful they are going to have to show the defendants, the FAA in particular, had evidence of turbulence and had a duty to transmit it to the crew and didn't do that," said Nance, who is a lawyer and a former pilot for Alaska Airlines. "That's a steep mountain to climb."

WSI provides weather reports for several airlines, national media, electrical utilities and package-delivery companies, according to the company's Web site.

"WSI delivers forecasts that are precise in time, location and intensity — using proprietary algorithms to detect severe weather as it occurs and operating a proprietary high resolution precision forecast system," the company's Web site said.

The two women are seeking to have WSI pay them for medical expenses, pain and suffering, emotional distress and lost wages, the claim said.

Jennifer Sullivan: 206-464-8294 or jensullivan@seattletimes.com