Aviation & Aerospace

Associated Partners

Condon & Forsyth LLP is widely recognized as the leading specialist law firm in the United States in the area of aviation and aerospace law.

While best known for our unparalleled expertise in commercial airline accident investigations and litigation, our attorneys are uniquely qualified and experienced in every aspect of aviation and aerospace law, including product liability, mass disaster and emergency response, aircraft finance, commercial transactions, class actions, and regulatory issues. Our goal is to ensure that our aviation and aerospace clients and their insurers obtain the best financial and legal results considering the unique circumstances of each case.

We have successfully handled virtually every conceivable legal issue for airlines, manufacturers and their insurers, including wrongful death, personal injury, property damage and cargo claims, as well as delay, denied boarding, sexual assault and discrimination claims.  Our attorneys have litigated at the trial level and on appeal many of the landmark legal precedents in aviation law, particularly relating to the Warsaw and Montreal Conventions.

We have represented clients in many major commercial airline disaster litigations and their attendant government investigations.  Many of our attorneys have aviation industry experience or are former or current military and commercial pilots, and regularly represent clients during accident investigations conducted by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). We also assist our airline clients in the development and implementation of air carrier family assistance plans that ensure that airline personnel respond appropriately in the event of an accident.

The firm has handled, on a recurring basis, such tasks for its aviation and aerospace clients as:

  • Providing advice about, and preparing contract documentation for, aircraft and equipment purchases, leases and financing;
  • Representing aviation and aerospace entities in DOT and FAA enforcement proceedings for hazardous material violations, Federal Aviation Regulation violations, passenger complaints and alleged violations of cargo shipping sanctions to certain countries;
  • Advising clients on International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) issues;
  • Assuring compliance with U.S. employment laws affecting foreign and locally engaged staff, including issues of wrongful termination and discrimination;
  • Obtaining licenses (foreign air carrier permits, renewals, operating exemptions);
  • Preparing airlines and foreign governments for bilateral discussions on such issues as fifth freedom rights, third country code sharing and open skies;
  • Advising airlines on the antitrust aspects of code sharing, alliances and other airline cooperative agreements and the need for antitrust immunity;
  • Assisting airlines in obtaining or trading High-Density Airport Landing Slots;
  • Obtaining charter authority and operational authorizations for blocked space arrangements, codeshares and wet leases;
  • Handling U.S. customs and immigration problems relating to passengers and cargo and representing clients in front of the U.S. Customs and Border Protections and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agencies;
  • Representing clients before airport authorities in regard to leases of airport premises, gates, user fees and other operational issues;
  • Advising airlines on DOT advertising rules and standards;
  • Assisting airlines on tariff and noise regulation requirements;
  • Preparing comments on proposed regulatory measures impacting our aviation and aerospace clients;
  • Preparing and reviewing U.S. aircraft registrations, lien recordings at the FAA in Oklahoma City and U.C.C. filings in Washington, D.C.; and
  • Preparing and reviewing contracts with travel agents and wholesalers, charter contracts, freight-forwarder contracts, maintenance and spare parts contracts and passenger and cargo handler contracts.

Our attorneys also author The Liability Reporter, published annually under the auspices of the International Air Transportation Association (IATA) and are instructors at the IATA Aviation Training and Development Institute.  Due to their exceptional experience in the aviation and aerospace sector, our attorneys are also frequent lecturers at various legal and industry conferences throughout the world.

The following is a partial listing of the major aviation litigations in which Condon & Forsyth LLP was lead counsel for one of the parties during the past twenty-five years:

  • Air Crash in Vinhedo, Sao Paulo, Brazil on August 9, 2024
  • Air Crash near Naples, Florida on February 9, 2024
  • Air Crash near Pompano Beach, Florida on August 28, 2023
  • Air Crash at Calicut International Airport, Kerala, India on August 7, 2020
  • Air Crash at Guatemala Aeroclub in Iztapa, Escintla, Guatemala on January 24, 2020
  • Air Crash in Trinty Bay, Texas on February 23, 2019
  • Air Crash near Durango, Mexico on July 31, 2018
  • Air Crash in Kathmandu, Nepal on March 12, 2018
  • Air Crash near Punta Islita Airport, Costa Rica on December 31, 2017
  • Mid-air Crash near San Diego-Brown Field Municipal Airport, California on August 16, 2015
  • Air Crash in the Java Sea on December 28, 2014
  • Air Crash at Gaithersburg, Maryland on December 14, 2014
  • Air Crash at San Francisco, CA on July 6, 2013
  • Air Crash at Georgetown, Guyana on July 30, 2011
  • Air Crash near Islamabad, Pakistan, on July 28, 2010
  • Air Crash near Buffalo, New York, on February 12, 2009
  • Air Crash Disaster at Tegucigalpa, Honduras, on May 30, 2008
  • Mid-Air Crash Disaster Near Peixoto De Azeveda, Brazil, on September 29, 2006
  • Air Crash at Belle Harbor, New York, on November 12, 2001
  • September 11 Terrorist Attack Litigation
  • Air Crash at Taipei, Taiwan, on October 31, 2000
  • Air Crash Near Nantucket Island, Massachusetts, on October 31, 1999
  • Air Crash Near Peggy’s Cove, Nova Scotia, on September 2, 1998
  • Air Crash at Agana, Guam, on August 6, 1997
  • Air Crash near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on September 8, 1994
  • Air Crash Disaster at Kathmandu, Nepal, on July 31, 1992
  • Air Crash Disaster at Tucuti, Panama, on June 6, 1992
  • Air Disaster Near Cove Neck, New York, on January 25, 1990
  • Air Crash Disaster at Tegucigalpa, Honduras, on October 21, 1989
  • Air Crash Disaster Near Warsaw, Poland, on May 9, 1987
  • Mid-Air Collision Over Cerritos, California, on August 31, 1986