The families of fifteen people who died aboard American Airlines Flight 587 on November 12, 2001 have filed lawsuits against the airliner. The suits allege American failed to adequately train employees to work on the aircraft and neglected to properly inspect the jet before it took off from New York's Kennedy International Airport. The American Airbus 300 crashed into the Rockaway Beach section of New York City. All 260 passengers and crew aboard the flight were killed. According to investigators, the plane's tail section separated from the aircraft shortly after takeoff.

Since the crash, aviation officials and pilots have publicly questioned the safety of the Airbus 300. Approximately sixty of the more than 400 Airbus A300 pilots employed by American Airlines recently submitted a letter requesting that the airline ground the jumbo jet until an investigation of Flight 587's tail section is completed. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has yet to determine why the tail fin and rudder sheared off the aircraft.