 NTSB investigators concluded that the likely cause of the crash was pilot error . The board concluded that Clay and Polehinke ignored clues that they were on the wrong runway , failed to confirm their position on the runway and talked too much , in violation of " sterile cockpit " procedures . Comair later accepted responsibility for the crash , but also placed blame on the airport , for what it called poor runway signs and markings , and the Federal Aviation Administration , which had only one air traffic controller on duty , contrary to a <unk> it had previously issued to have two workers on overnight shifts . A judge ruled that , since it was owned by county governments , the airport had sovereign immunity and could not be sued by Comair . 
