The sequence of events that led to the crash of this aircraft was initiated by a failure of the RTL system.
In the aftermath of the loss of Flight 587, NTSB Safety Board member Debbie Hersman made the following statement.
"The sensitivity of the system is critical and needs to be addressed."
The NTSB decreed that modifications were needed to nearly 500 Airbus A300-600 and A310 aircraft in order to provide pilots with greater protection from hazardous rudder pedal inputs at high airspeeds that can lead to aircraft pilot coupling (APC)
At the end of the daylong hearing, NTSB Vice Chairman Mark Rosenker said, "We've seen today a tragic coupling of the pilot and aircraft that brought down Flight 587."
Pending system modifications, the board said that pilots need to be advised in no uncertain terms that back-and-forth pedal inputs to the rudder, or rudder reversals - even within the certified maneuvering speed - pose the risk of imparting aerodynamic loads high enough to break the fin, as was the case in the Flight 587 .
Is it not a sad irony that a system designed to protect against excessive rudder inputs by the crew was the initiating cause of another accident.