Two American pilots facing criminal charges after their executive jet collided with a commercial airliner over the Amazon are willing to testify in the case, but will not return to Brazil, their American lawyer said Thursday. "They are innocent of any crime, but are completely willing and eager to tell their story," said Joel R. Weiss. "We are going to tell our story according to international treaty."
          Joseph Lepore and Jan Paladino and four Brazilian air controllers were indicted in June by a Brazilian judge. The pilots are accused of turning off the transponder on their Embraer Legacy 600 executive jet before it collided at 37,000 feet (11,000 meters) with a Boeing 737 operated by Gol airlines last September. All 154 people aboard the jetliner were killed; none of the seven people aboard the pilots' jet, owned by ExcelAire of Ronkonkoma, was injured. The pilots deny turning off the transponder and instead say they were flying at an altitude designated by the air controllers. They could face up to three years in prison if convicted.
          A federal judge in Brazil issued a subpoena last month for the pilots to testify at a court proceeding this Monday, but Weiss said their Brazilian defense attorney, Theo Dias, will tell the court they have declined to return to Brazil. Weiss cited the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty, which he said would allow the pilots to testify about the case from their home country. He said the pilots could offer depositions, be interviewed by Brazilian authorities in the U.S., or testify by video conference or other electronic means.

Learn more about the Gol airlines crash and the rights of families of victims of the accident.