WASHINGTON, D.C. -- A federal safety panel investigating a 2008 Denver International Airport (DIA) runway accident says airlines need to update the way pilots are trained.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) says the Boeing 737 ran off the runway because the captain of Continental Airlines Flight 1404 failed to use the plane's rudder to correct its direction during a strong crosswind.
The plane veered off the runway, broke into pieces and burned.
No one was killed, but six people were seriously injured.
The board says there was a brief moment in which the captain could have prevented the accident, but he had several factors working against him. Among those, the air traffic controller failed to tell him about strong wind gusts.
The board also faults Continental's flight simulator training for pilots, which doesn't include training for gusts.
The investigators recommend realistic gusty winds be incorporated into pilot training.
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