Crises come in all shapes and sizes, but few are more devastating than airline crashes. Unfortunately, such events are often defining moments in the careers of PR
practitioners. Pan Am never recovered from the 1988 bombing over Lockerbie, Scotland that killed 270 people, although the airline itself was not to blame for the tragedy.
PR NEWS recently caught up with Peter Goelz, former managing director of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) to discuss how top crisis communicators are
managing traumas in which deaths occur.
PRN: At NTSB, you handled crisis communications for scores of airline disasters, including JFK Jr., Egypt Air flight 990 and the crash of Alaska Air flight 261.
What is the standard response time in a crisis that involves extreme circumstances, such as loss of life?
Goelz: Less than one hour. There was a watershed accident in 1997, in which a commuter plane crashed over Detroit and there were 29 fatalities. It was covered live, by
helicopter. The announcers came on and said, "This much we know." There were three things they subsequently reported - the wrong location where [the plane] was landing, the
wrong location where it took off from, and the wrong number of people on board. In the Swiss Air accident up off Nova Scotia [in 1998], there were early reports that there were
survivors being brought to shore.
PRN: Why are these false reports occurring so routinely?
Goelz: There's a lot of pressure associated with the 24-hour news cycle and Internet reporting. Some news outlets have different standards for the Web. They'll float a
story on the Internet that's far less sourced than anything they'd ever run in [print] or broadcast. There's also pressure for cable stations to fill 24 hours worth of air time
[immediately following a crash] because this is when they get their ratings.
PRN: Do regulatory agencies such as the NTSB put restrictions on what corporate spokesmen can say in the aftermath of a crash?
Goelz: [In 1995] the rule for airlines was that if a question could be asked and answered prior to the accident, then you were free to answer it. Unfortunately, these
corporations suffered a lot of damage for not responding in a timely manner [because of NTSB restrictions]. This prompted the NTSB to reevaluate carriers' ability to be proactive
after an accident.
PRN: So today's airline spokesmen have more latitude in what they can say?
Goelz: Yes. They can say the type of plane (reporters always get that wrong), the number of passengers, who the crew members were, and can offer information about the
safety record of the plane. Also, there was a law passed in 1996 known as the Family Disaster Assistance Act, which requires every airline to have a plan on file with the
government that spells out how they will respond in the event of a crash. This includes having an 800 number that people can call for information.
PRN: There were 88 people killed on Alaska Airlines flight 261 last January. Most corporate communications departments don't even have that many staff members.
How does a small team handle a crisis of this magnitude - in terms of communicating with victims' families and other stakeholders?
Goelz: As soon as the information becomes public, the press will try to reach the victims' families. What you do is offer them support, but you obviously can't muzzle
them from speaking to the press.
Most air carriers and charter companies take volunteers from across their [corporate] family and train them for a possible crisis. During the Alaska Air crash, there were 300-
400 people mobilized. One thing airlines do now is they assign a team member to go assist each family. These employees are trained to recognize the various stages of grief, and
are coached on how to handle the likely requests, such as canceling appointments. In the event of a crash, the first thing [family members] want to do is come to the site. The
team member can help arrange transportation to the airport and other matters.
PRN: A plane crash must have an overwhelming effect on the internal culture of an airline as well.
Goelz: It does. Companies that deploy volunteer emergency care teams should also have counseling in place for those employees.
PRN: Airline disasters constitute only a small fraction of the types of crises corporations face. Is all this stuff relevant to the average PR executive?
Goelz: The same strategies can apply to crises involving charter [bus] companies, train wrecks, pipeline explosions, cruise ship fires. And every corporation -
particularly those with their own aviation fleets - should have a plan in place for if their executives are killed in a plane crash. How will the company be run? How will
families be contacted?
(Goelz, 202/778-1000)