CO responds to =0ADOT findings on Flight 2816=0ALarry =0Atoday issued the f= ollowing statement regarding Continental Express Flight 2816 =0A(operated b= y ExpressJet Airlines), which was subjected to a lengthy ground delay =0Afo= llowing a weather diversion to Rochester (RST), Minn., on Aug. 8, 2009. = =0AResponding =0Ato the findings of a U.S. Department of Transportation (DO= T) investigation that =0Athe ExpressJet crew was not at fault and that the = local representative of Mesaba =0AAirlines (a wholly-owned subsidiary of De= lta Air Lines), improperly refused the =0Arequests of the captain to let he= r passengers off the plane, Larry =0Asaid, =E2=80=9CContinental takes respo= nsibility for the care of its customers, whether =0Athey are on our regiona= l partners=E2=80=99 flights or our own. We are gratified that =0ASecretary = LaHood recognized the crew=E2=80=99s efforts to resolve the situation. =0A= =E2=80=9CWhile =0Athe result for the customers was clearly unacceptable, it= is evident that the =0AExpressJet crew worked through the night to resolve= the situation and was =0Afrustrated with Delta Connection=E2=80=99s failur= e to provide reasonable assistance. =0A=E2=80=9CWe =0Ahave processes in pla= ce to avoid these situations and those processes clearly =0Abroke down in t= his case. We are working to ensure that doesn't happen again,=E2=80=9D =0AL= arry said.=0AIn =0Athe statement issued by the DOT, LaHood said, =E2=80=9CT= he [Mesaba] representative =0Aincorrectly said that the airport was closed = to passengers for security reasons, =0Awhich led to this nightmare for thos= e stuck on the plane.=E2=80=9D =0AIn =0Aaddition, the manager of the Roches= ter Airport incorrectly stated in several =0Aprevious interviews that the p= assengers and crew could have deplaned and that =E2=80=9Call decisions made= to keep the passengers enplaned were =0Amade by the Continental Dispatch i= n MSP.=E2=80=9D=0AThe =0ADOT statement also said the Aviation Enforcement O= ffice is considering the =0Aappropriate action to take against Mesaba as it= completes the investigation, =0Awhich it expects to conclude within a few = weeks. =0AExpressJet =0Aissued a separate statement saying, =E2=80=9CExpres= sJet and Continental have a long =0Astanding relationship of cooperation wi= th the Department of Transportation (DOT) =0Aon passenger rights. ExpressJe= t was one of the few regional airlines that =0Avoluntarily participated in = the DOT's task force on developing contingency plans =0Aduring extended tar= mac delays. Through knowledge gained by participating in the =0ADOT task fo= rce, both ExpressJet and Continental adopted an extended tarmac delay =0Apr= ogram. As the timeline and digital voice recordings accompanying this relea= se =0Aprove, both companies know the program and attempted to follow =0Ait.= =E2=80=9D=0A =0ACo-workers may read the full statements by CO, D= OT and ExpressJet by clicking =0Athe links below.=0AContinental Airlines Re= sponds to DOT =0AFindings on Flight 2816=0AExpressJet =0AResponds to DOT Re= view of Extended Tarmac Delay on Flight =0A2816=0AStatement by U.S. =0ATran= sportation Secretary Ray LaHood on Conclusion of the Preliminary Phase of = =0Athe Continental Tarmac Delay Investigation <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> If you wish to unsubscribe from the AIRLINE List, please send an E-mail to: "listserv@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx". Within the body of the text, only write the following:"SIGNOFF AIRLINE".