Lawyers said five families of passengers killed in the Continental Airlines Flight 3407 crash have reached settlements with the airlines involved.

Forty-nine people on the plane and one man on the ground died when the plane operated by Pinnacle Airlines' Colgan Air subsidiary crashed in the Buffalo suburb of Clarence.

Lawyers for other passengers' families said more settlements are likely before the wrongful-death cases go to trial in March 2012. The terms of the settlements are confidential.

Some families also want the cockpit voice recording released, but the airlines object. A federal judge is expected to rule on that issue within a month.