Expert Faults Controller's Orders in Fatal 2000 Chicago Accident

Feb. 8 -- An aviation consultant testified Wednesday that an air-traffic controller's negligence led to the midair collision near Waukegan that killed radio star WGN Bob Collins and two other people in 2000.

"There were a multitude of things he did wrong," Richard P. Burgess, who spent 32 years at the Federal Aviation Administration, testified at a federal trial into the cause of the crash.

Burgess, hired by lawyers for Collins' widow, also said that a 1997 midair collision at Chicago's Meigs Field that killed seven people was "a wake-up call" that should have prompted the FAA to install radar at the Waukegan Regional Airport in addition to installing it at Meigs.

The Waukegan airfield was busier than Meigs, yet only Meigs was equipped with radar after the midair collision at the lakefront airport, according to testimony.

Radar was installed at the Waukegan field five months after the crash killed Collins, his passenger, Herman Luscher, and student pilot Sharon Hock in the other plane.

In testimony Tuesday, Gregory Fowler, the air-traffic controller in question, admitted he had no idea of the precise location of Hock's Cessna when he instructed her to turn toward the Waukegan airport.

Less than two minutes later, Collins' Moravan Z242L rear-ended the Cessna 172P. Collins' plane crashed onto the roof of the Midwestern Regional Medical Center, and Hock's plane plummeted to a Zion street.

Lawyers for the victims have sued the U.S. government, contending that the FAA was responsible for the crash even though a private company operated the Waukegan tower. U.S. District Judge John Darrah is to decide the case.

Burgess testified that Fowler erred when he issued certain directives to the two pilots, including clearing Collins to land, even though he had neither plane in sight.

The sky was hazy, making visibility difficult on Feb. 8, 2000.

Burgess also faulted Fowler for not requesting additional reports from the pilots on their positions.

Moments before instructing Hock to turn toward the airfield, which is located near Lake Michigan, Fowler had asked if she had passed the shoreline. "Gettin' there," she replied. On the witness stand Tuesday, Fowler admitted he should have followed up to obtain a more precise location.

On cross-examination of Burgess, Jill Dahlmann Rosa, a Justice Department lawyer, suggested he had a vendetta against the FAA after he had been suspended and reassigned to a nonsupervisory position late in his career. Burgess denied any hard feelings.

Rosa also contended that in the last four years Burgess had found 32 air-traffic controllers at fault in 18 lawsuits in which he testified.

In other testimony Wednesday, Dr. Frank Weschler, Collins' physician, who briefly examined him the day before the fatal crash, said he didn't believe Collins' vision or cognitive abilities were impaired by his diabetes.

In opening statements Monday, the government contended that Collins caused the collision by misreporting his position to the tower and argued that diabetes impaired his ability to see and react.

Also Wednesday, media lawyer Joel Weisman, testifying as an expert, estimated that Collins, Chicago's top-ranked morning-radio personality, might have earned as much as $14 million from his next five-year contract and signing bonus if he had survived. At the time of his death, Collins was in the first year of a five-year contract that paid him about $9.5 million, bonus included.

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