When an aviation accident involves a private plane or helicopter, the lawsuits can be even more complex and challenging.
Unlike commercial jetliners, private aircraft do not have the “black boxes” which store information about the events leading up to the accident. This makes pinpointing the error even more difficult. Additionally, even though private planes and their pilots must adhere to safety standards like any other pilot or aircraft, the regulations governing them are not as rigorous and so are harder to enforce. This means that investigation of these crashes can be more costly and time-consuming.
Helicopter accidents can be tricky to litigate as well, for still other reasons. Helicopters and medevacs can withstand more severe weather conditions than planes with fixed wings, so they are often used in situations too dangerous for other flight. Because they can be off the ground and on the way more quickly than an airplane, helicopters or medevacs are also often relied upon for emergency transport, such as when a critical patient must be quickly moved to another medical facility. But flying under extreme pressure or in severe weather also means higher risk for accidents – leaving even more complex facts to sort out in order to identify the party that is negligent.
Moreover, use of helicopters and other non-fixed wing aircraft is increasing in frequency, as is the number of accidents. In the United States, helicopters are increasingly used for:
- Medevac, Air Ambulances and Aerial Firefighters
- News Reporting and Events requiring Aerial Views
- Private or Business Transportation
- Tourism
When such devastation can result from any failure to adhere to flight safety standards and aircraft maintenance, owners and operators of any aircraft have a duty and a responsibility to do their jobs with the highest degree of care. Any pilot error or faulty part can result in serious accidents. That means pilots must make no mistakes. Never making a mistake is difficult if not impossible for any person – but even harder in high pressure, high stakes, high risk situations.
By understanding the complexities of the aviation industry, we know what to look for when accidents happen. If you have been hurt by a plane or helicopter accident, call us – we are here to listen to what happened and answer your questions. We have many years of experience representing people like you and we strive to make sure our clients’ voices are heard and their losses, injuries, and damages are taken into account. We want our community to be a safe place – for your families and ours.
Help us help you start to recover from this tragedy; help us protect our community from having to face this type of tragedy again.