Plane Crash Victim Funeral: Identification, Timeline, Rights

After a fatal plane crash, a local medical examiner or coroner usually identifies the victims and releases the remains, and the NTSB leads the federal investigation. How long that takes depends on the crash, and it can be days or many weeks. You do not have to rush. A funeral or burial can wait for the release of the remains, and a memorial service can be held at any time.

This guide explains who is in charge in the first days, what US law requires of airlines, how identification works, and how families plan a funeral or memorial.

Who is in charge in the first days?

A crash is investigated by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). Federal law gives the NTSB primary federal responsibility for facilitating the recovery and identification of people killed in an aircraft accident. The remains themselves are usually in the care of the local medical examiner or coroner. Our guide to coroner investigations explains what that office does and why it controls the timing of the release.

Two other groups may be involved:

• The airline. A US airline must have a plan for helping families. The plan must include a toll-free number with staff to answer calls, a process to notify families before the names of passengers are made public, and help for the family to travel to the accident location and with their physical care.
• DMORT teams. Disaster Mortuary Operational Response Teams are federal teams of medical examiners, coroners, forensic specialists and funeral directors. They are sent at the request of local authorities to support identification, set up temporary morgue operations and track remains and personal effects.

If you are not sure who to call, the NTSB Transportation Disaster Assistance Division is the primary agency contact for families. Its toll-free number is (800) 683-9369.

What does US law require of the airline?

For passengers on a US air carrier, 49 U.S.C. 41113 requires the airline's plan to include these things:

• A reliable, toll-free telephone number for families, with staff to answer it
• Notice to families before any public notice of the passengers' names
• A list of the passengers aboard, based on the best information available
• Return of the passenger's possessions in its control, regardless of condition, unless they are needed for the investigation
• Consultation with the family of each passenger about the disposition of all remains and personal effects
• Retention of unclaimed possessions for at least 18 months
• Help for the family to travel to the accident location and for their physical care
• The same treatment for the families of non-revenue passengers and other victims, including victims on the ground

Another section, 49 U.S.C. 1136, directs the NTSB to arrange for an independent nonprofit organization to coordinate emotional and family support services. That support includes private places to grieve and help arranging memorial services in consultation with families. It applies to foreign carriers flying in or over the US too.

The family assistance requirements in these laws do not include paying for the funeral. Financial recovery usually comes through a claim, covered below.

How are victims identified, and how long does it take?

The medical examiner or coroner decides when an identification is certain. Teams collect ante-mortem information from families, such as medical and dental records, and compare it with post-mortem findings using forensic methods. DMORT describes this as collecting ante-mortem and post-mortem data and using methods such as dental pathology and anthropology to identify victims.

There is no standard timeline. It depends on how many people were on board, the condition of the remains and the location, so be wary of any single figure you see online. A crash over water or in remote terrain generally takes longer. Ask the medical examiner what to expect and how you will be told, and ask whether you want to be told if more remains are identified later.

When the office releases the remains, a death certificate follows. Order several certified copies, since insurers, banks and agencies each want one. Our guide on how many death certificates you need helps you estimate, and the tool below lists the other documents families usually need.

What are the funeral and memorial options?

Because of the condition of the remains, families often work closely with the funeral director and the medical examiner on what is possible. Some families are advised against an open casket or a viewing. Ask frankly what to expect and decide who, if anyone, should see the remains.

Your options include:

• A funeral with burial or cremation after the remains are released.
• A memorial service first, with a committal, burial or scattering later. See memorial vs. funeral service.
• A service without the remains present. Our guide on funeral without a body covers what that looks like.
• A shared memorial with other families, which some communities organize after a large accident. See multiple casualty funerals and disaster victim funerals.

If the crash happened abroad, see our guides on a funeral while abroad and what to do when a death happens overseas.

The FTC Funeral Rule applies to funeral homes as it does in any death. You can get prices by phone, you must be given a General Price List, and you choose only the goods and services you want. Read our General Price List guide before you meet a funeral home.

What compensation and financial help exist?

Funeral costs and other losses are usually recovered through claims after an accident, not through an automatic payment.

• International flights. Under the Montreal Convention, the airline is strictly liable for proven damages for each passenger up to 100,000 Special Drawing Rights, the limit in the treaty as originally written. The carrier cannot avoid that amount by proving it was not at fault. The figure has been adjusted over the years, so ask a lawyer for the current limit, which is higher than that original figure. The convention also lets countries require airlines to make advance payments.
• Domestic flights. Claims are generally made under the law of the state where the crash happened or where the victim lived.
• Crime victim compensation. State victim compensation programs cover funeral and burial costs only for crime-related deaths, so they do not usually apply to an accident.
• Insurance. Look for life insurance, accidental death cover, travel insurance and any employer policy. See claiming life insurance and travel insurance death cover.

Under federal law, a lawyer cannot make unsolicited contact with survivors or relatives about a possible lawsuit before the 45th day after the accident. After that, or whenever you choose to call one yourself, look for an attorney with aviation accident experience, because these cases involve federal law and treaties.

How do you cope with the attention?

A crash is public in a way most deaths are not. News coverage can replay the same footage for days. Some families choose one relative or friend to take media calls and relay only what matters. The NTSB can send investigative updates directly to families through its Transportation Disaster Assistance Division, so you do not have to follow the news to learn what is happening.

The law directs the NTSB to arrange an independent organization that stays in regular contact with families until they no longer need help. Grief after a sudden, public loss can be intense, and talking to a grief counselor or your doctor is reasonable. Our guide on planning a funeral while grieving has practical tips.

What to do next

1. Call the airline's family assistance number and the NTSB Transportation Disaster Assistance Division, and ask the medical examiner how you will be told about identification and release.
2. Ask a trusted relative or friend to handle calls and requests.
3. Hold off on signing any release until an aviation attorney has reviewed it.
4. Choose a funeral home when the remains are close to release, or plan a memorial now and the committal later.