Lang quotes from Flight (2012)

As you know, when a plane goes down, the NTSB sends a Go Team to the crash site immediately.

They find the flight data recorder?

They did. It's perfectly intact.

Oh, great. Great, great, great. Then that solves everything. So, why do we need a lawyer from Chicago?

Well, Hugh specializes in criminal negligence.

Criminal negligence?

Lang

Death demands responsibility. Six dead on that plane, someone has to pay.

Yeah, but that's a plane that fell a part at 30,000 feet.

The airline will try to prove equipment failure, which is gonna make the manufacturer responsible. The manufacturer, in turn, is gonna try and prove poor maintenance of the equipment by the airline.

Lang

Or pilot error.

I flew the plane inverted, Hugh. That means upside down. You get the picture? A hundred people, upside down, 500 feet off the ground. Do you have any idea what that's like?

Lang

I do. I, uh, heard the black box recordings last night.

Oh, you heard this? Are you a pilot?

Lang

No, I'm not.

Then you don't know what the **** you're talking about, do you?

Hugh's on our team, Whip.

Is he?

Yeah, he is.

He doesn't act like he's on our team.

Well, he is.

Asking me questions about **** pilot error.

Listen, it's the NTSB's ball game. They run the investigation, and they will ultimately rule on the cause. And that's why we need him.

Lang

Well, they interview the entire flight crew, they interview the passengers, they hold public hearings.

All right, let's cut to the chase. Just tell me what it is I need to know, Charlie.

Lang

The NTSB Go Team also collects blood, hair and skin samples from the entire flight crew for the purposes of a toxicology report.

Okay. When do they want to do that?

Lang

They've already done that. In the hospital. It's the first thing they do. You don't remember having your blood drawn the night of the crash?

No. They get the results of this test?

Lang

Yeah, they do. Now, initial reports show that you had alcohol in your system at a system of .24. Now, in the good old U.S. of A., one of the most lenient drunk driving countries in the world, you go to jail for driving with anything above .08. And by driving, I mean a car.

So, that doesn't mean anything. I had a couple of beers the night before the flight. That made the tail of the plane explode?

Lang

A couple of beers?

Yeah, a couple of beers. You know, I need a lawyer, Charlie.

Hugh is your lawyer.

I need a bigger lawyer. I need a lawyer that understands that someone put me in a broken plane. Without me up there, there would've been 102 funerals, not six.

Lang

We're not talking about funerals right now, Captain.

Then what are we talking about?

Lang

We're talking about prison time.

What?

Lang

Lawsuits. Somebody has to pay.

What, write a check? It's not gonna be me, I promise you that. As long as they're writing checks, tell them to write one for me, too. Because somebody put me in a broken plane.

Lang

This toxicology report states that you were drunk and high on cocaine. Felonies punishable by up to 12 years in prison. And if it is proven that your intoxication was the cause of death of the four passengers, now we're going to look at four counts of manslaughter. That could be life in prison.

Lang

You can see on initial impact, the left wing hit the ground. Think if it would have sheared off completely, everybody would've walked away from this plane.

Wing snapped off, drove the engine cowling into the rear fuselage.

Lang

You were sitting in the last six or seven rows it was like being hit by a train. Listen, clearly there was a mechanical issue with this plane.

Clearly.

Lang

Yeah. But what you and I know, this was an act of God, and I'm going to fight to get the NTSB to add "act of God" as one of the probable causes.

Whose God would do this?

I never wanted that **** airline and neither did my brother, it was my father that wanted it. I like baseball.

Lang

Oh, I like baseball.

Everybody in Georgia likes baseball.

The whole country likes baseball-

Cut the crap. So what’s the deal, Lenny? Is your union going to survive this one? More importantly, how big of a check do you think I’m going to have to write?

Well you had six fatalities on board.

Lang

No, no, it’s four. The two crew members don’t count. [slight chuckle] I don’t mean they don’t count. They don’t get settlements like the passengers. That’s a workman’s comp claim, part of the union contract. They do a dangerous job; they know it.

Are you the lawyer for the pilots’ union?

No, sir, this is Hugh Lang. He’s the attorney we brought on board to handle the criminal side of Captain Whitaker’s situation.

And what is Mr. Whitaker’s situation? NTSB is up my ass with a flashlight. We had to give them access to everything. Everybody’s curious about Captain Whitaker.

Well I flew with him in the Navy and he is a great pilot.

Huh. Is he a drunk?

He is a heavy drinker. But maybe I should bring him-

In a minute. Alright so let’s get down to it, Lenny. What does the union plan to do about this blood test saying Whitaker was high on booze and coke? This guy’s a real peach.

Lang

Well, I’m going to kill the toxicology report. The testing was done incompetently. The toxicology equipment they used was last calibrated in June of 2009, already eighteen months past code. Their log that should clearly state who labeled the blood vials and when, is very incomplete. And they used a preservative in the blood that has been known to cause fermentation of the blood and in some cases register higher in an alcohol test. Now, I’ve done all this and I’ve only been here a few days so, I wouldn’t worry about it too much. I can handle this.

I like this guy, Lenny. He makes we want to go out, sniff a few lines and then fly a jet.

Mr. Carr, we are going to fight to push all fault on the manufacturer, Jackson-Ridgefield.

And you think they’re just going to open their check book and buy us all lunch? Good **** luck. What’s my exposure, Jim?

Well the awards to the families could kill the airline.

**** the airline. Insurance companies can have the goddamn airline. I just don’t want them sniffing my other pockets.

Speaking for the pilots’ union, sir, we don’t want to see your airline go away. We enjoy the contract you have with us. We’re going to protect Captain Whitaker and in turn, we’re going to protect your airline.

Does Whitaker know he’s going to jail?

Lang

My clients don’t go to jail, Mr. Carr.

Oh, he’s going to jail. He belongs in jail, bet your ass he’s going to jail. Only question is, is he going to die in jail?

Lang

You’re wrong, Mr. Carr.

Last time I checked six counts of manslaughter is life in prison.

Life in prison. What we in Georgia call “all day long”.

Lang

When I first met you, I couldn't believe what a drunk arrogant scumbag you were.

Oh, really?

Lang

Yeah.

Oh, thank you.

Lang

But I did the research, Captain Whittaker. I heard the expert analysis and I'm in awe of what you did. The FAA and the NTSB took ten pilots, placed them in simulators, recreated the events that led to this plane falling out of the sky. Do you know how many were safely able to land the planes? Not one. Every pilot crashed the aircraft. Killed everybody on board. You were the only one who could do it.