First Steps to Take After an Airplane Accident

Why Every Second Counts After a Crash

Airplane accidents unfold in ways that leave little time to think. In New York, whether you’re involved in an incident at JFK, LaGuardia, or a smaller regional airfield, the moments afterward are chaotic. 

First responders rush in, passengers are shaken, and families are scrambling for answers. When every second feels like it matters, you need to focus on survival first and preparation for what lies ahead right after.

If you’ve lived through an airplane crash, you know the pressure builds fast. Your health comes first, but so does protecting your ability to hold someone accountable. You can’t control what happened in the air, but you can take steps on the ground that put you in the best position to recover.

Our aviation and airplane accident attorneys at Horn Wright, LLP, have helped families in New York and across our other practice states, including New Jersey, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine, fight for the justice they deserve after crashes big and small. 

When you bring us in, you’re not just hiring a lawyer—you’re getting a team that knows how to investigate, preserve evidence, and push back against airlines, insurers, and manufacturers who’d rather you settle for less.

Don’t wait for time to work against you. Call (855) 465-4622 today and let us stand with you from the very first step.

Get Medical Care Before Anything Else

When a plane goes down or even suffers a rough emergency landing, injuries pile up. Many are obvious—broken bones, burns, concussions. 

Others, like internal bleeding, spinal damage, or traumatic brain injuries, aren’t always visible in the first few hours. That’s why the first step is letting paramedics and doctors evaluate you right away. Don’t brush off symptoms because you’re focused on someone else or just want to leave the scene.

At major airports in New York, medical teams are trained for mass casualty events. JFK and LaGuardia both have protocols that move patients to hospitals like Jamaica Hospital Medical Center in Queens or NYU Langone in Manhattan. 

Even if your crash happened at a smaller airfield upstate, EMS providers will move quickly to stabilize you and transport you to the nearest trauma center. Their reports become part of your record, and that documentation matters for both your treatment and your legal claim.

Follow-up is just as important as the first exam. Some injuries worsen over time or reveal themselves only after the adrenaline fades. If you delay or skip appointments, insurers can argue you weren’t really hurt. 

Keeping that medical trail tight ensures your health is treated seriously and gives your attorney the evidence needed to connect the dots between the crash and your long-term needs.

Preserve Evidence Before It Disappears

Accident scenes are messy, and in aviation cases, investigators from the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board quickly take over. That means you may only have a short window to collect personal evidence. While official agencies will perform thorough reviews, what you capture can fill gaps and strengthen your case.

• Photos and videos at the scene. Snapshots of injuries, wreckage, or even the surrounding weather conditions can tell a story that official reports leave out. Those images are timestamped, making them hard for insurers or defendants to dispute later. They may also capture hazards like faulty equipment or unsafe boarding procedures.
• Contact info from witnesses. Fellow passengers or bystanders often see details you missed in the panic. Collecting names, phone numbers, and emails gives your lawyer independent voices to support your version of events. When time passes, those witnesses can be hard to track down.
• Official reports. The FAA and NTSB release findings, but you can request records early. Local police or Port Authority officers will file their own reports, and those documents can confirm timelines, identify involved parties, and preserve details that fade over weeks.
• Personal notes. Writing down what you remember—sights, sounds, or even smells—adds another layer. It doesn’t need to be polished. Just a quick journal of your perspective can prove invaluable later when memory isn’t as sharp.

The more layers of evidence you save, the harder it is for powerful airline insurers to deny what really happened. Each piece builds toward a bigger picture.

Report the Accident to the Right Authorities

Airplane accidents are not like car crashes where you just swap insurance cards. Different agencies control the process. 

In the U.S., the NTSB leads investigations of civil aviation accidents. The FAA steps in to evaluate whether safety regulations were broken. Local police, sheriffs, or the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey handle the scene when crashes occur around New York City’s airports.

Why does reporting matter so much? Because claims and lawsuits often rely on these official findings. If the NTSB determines a mechanical defect played a role, that evidence supports a claim against the manufacturer. 

If the FAA uncovers pilot error, that strengthens a negligence case against the operator. Without those filings, you’re left fighting uphill against carriers and their insurers who argue nothing went wrong.

On top of agency involvement, your own reporting is critical. Notifying your insurer promptly preserves coverage, even if you weren’t at fault. And if a wrongful death is involved, New York Estates, Powers & Trusts Law Section 5-4.1 requires the estate representative to file within a strict timeline. 

The sooner the right people are notified, the less room there is for legal maneuvering that hurts your recovery.

Protect Yourself When Speaking About the Crash

After a crash, you’ll feel pressure to explain what happened. Family, friends, reporters, and especially insurers want details. How you handle those conversations can make or break your claim.

• Avoid oversharing online. Social media may feel like a safe outlet, but airlines and insurers track those posts. A casual remark can be twisted into evidence against you. Even photos of you smiling weeks later may be used to argue you’re “fully recovered.”
• Be careful with insurance reps. Adjusters may sound sympathetic, but their job is to minimize payouts. Anything you say could be recorded, and innocent phrases might later be used to deny or limit compensation.
• Stick to facts with investigators. When FAA or NTSB officials interview you, keep your answers honest but limited. Guessing or exaggerating can backfire once technical evidence is reviewed.
• Let your lawyer handle sensitive communication. Our personal injury attorneys act as your filter, ensuring nothing you say gets misinterpreted. This protects you from strategies designed to poke holes in your case.

Being cautious means protecting yourself from being taken advantage of while you’re still recovering.

Know Who Might Be Held Responsible

Determining fault in an airplane crash isn’t simple. In New York courts, liability often spreads across multiple parties. Unlike a car crash where one driver is clearly at fault, aviation cases involve a web of responsibilities.

The airline itself may bear responsibility if training was inadequate, schedules were unsafe, or maintenance was skipped. Pilots may share liability if errors in judgment or skill caused the accident. Manufacturers can face claims under product liability law if a defective part contributed to the crash. Even third-party maintenance companies or contractors may be named in lawsuits when shortcuts or negligence are uncovered.

New York’s rules allow shared liability. That means even if one defendant argues another should bear more blame, all can still be held accountable. For families facing mounting medical bills or grieving a wrongful death, this broad net helps ensure no responsible party escapes accountability.

How Horn Wright, LLP, Supports Victims in New York and Beyond

Handling an aviation case takes more than surface knowledge of personal injury law. These cases demand resources, experts, and an understanding of both state and federal systems. 

At Horn Wright, LLP, our trusted New York attorneys have built teams that handle exactly that level of complexity. If you’re trying to sort through the aftermath of an airplane crash, contacting our office connects you directly with a team that understands the pressure you’re under. 

We’ll review what happened, bring in aviation specialists when needed, and start building a strategy that fits your unique circumstances. Our work has always been about standing with victims when the odds feel stacked against them. Let’s secure your future after a crash.