Illinois Helicopter Crash Lawyers

Common Causes of Helicopter Crashes

Helicopter crashes rarely come down to a single moment. These aircraft often operate low and close to obstacles, and when a system fails—loss of rotor control, power loss, instrument error, or maintenance breakdown—there may be little time or altitude to recover. In litigation, the focus is tracing the failure sequence, identifying what was preventable, and proving who controlled the risk.

Mechanical and system failures:

• Main rotor system failures
• Tail rotor failures and loss of yaw control
• Transmission and drivetrain failures
• Engine failure or power loss
• Avionics or instrument failures that mislead pilots in low visibility

Maintenance and inspection failures:

• Missed or inadequate inspections.
• Improper repairs and installation errors.
• Component fatigue or wear not identified in time.
• Incomplete, inaccurate, or misleading maintenance documentation.

Operational failures:

• Dispatch and go/no-go revenue pressure that overrides safe decision-making.
• Risk management breakdowns tied to mission profile.
• Training gaps, supervision failures, or unsafe procedures.
• Weather planning failures or route decisions that increase exposure.

Wire strikes and obstacle collisions:

Wire strikes remain one of the most persistent hazards in helicopter operations because many missions require low-altitude flight. These cases often come down to whether the operator followed accepted safety practices and whether the aircraft and operation used appropriate hazard mitigation.

Post-Crash Fire and Crashworthiness: When a Survivable Impact Becomes Unthinkable

Some of the most devastating helicopter cases share a pattern families find hard to accept: occupants survive the impact, but a fire erupts and causes fatal or life-altering burns. 

These cases often hinge on crashworthiness, including whether the helicopter’s fuel system and surrounding design reasonably protected occupants from preventable fire risk in an otherwise survivable crash.

Key questions often include:

• Did the fuel system rupture in a way that could have been prevented?
• Were safer designs or retrofits available but not adopted?
• Did maintenance practices increase the fire risk?
• Would the outcome have been dramatically different without a fuel-fed fire?

We Are the Country's Leading Law Firm on Helicopter Crash Resistant Fuel Systems (CRFS)

Our law firm has been on the leading edge of advocating for Crash Resistant Fuel Systems (CRFS) in helicopters for over 20 years (read about Mr. Robb’s work on CRFS in the Wall Street Journal). This technology has been available since the 1960s, but the helicopter industry has resisted utilizing it. As a result, even a routine hard landing can result in a devastating and disabling post-crash fire. We have handled many of these cases, including the two highest results in U.S. history, a $100 million cash settlement in 2024 in Nevada for the wrongful death of Jonathan Udall from post crash burn injuries during a Grand Canyon tour, a $100 million cash settlement in 2018 in Colorado for the 90% burn injuries to David Repsher in a 2015 helicopter crash, and one of the very first substantial settlements in 2001, $38 million for Chana Daskal's burn injuries sustained in a Grand Canyon helicopter crash.

On December 22, 2023, just prior to the scheduled Udall trial, Airbus for the first time offered its CRFS retrofits free of charge, to U.S. customers only. Mr. Robb has questioned Airbus’s action as too little too late.

Who Can Be Liable for a Helicopter Crash?

Helicopter crash cases are rarely limited to one defendant. Depending on the evidence, liability may involve:

• The operator or tour company (training, dispatch, safety practices, route decisions, operational policies)
• The pilot (decision-making, compliance, impairment, fatigue)
• Maintenance providers (inspection failures, improper repairs, missed defect indicators, recordkeeping issues)
• Manufacturers (design defects, crashworthiness failures, inadequate warnings)
• Component suppliers (fuel system parts, rotor assemblies, avionics, restraint systems)
• Ownership and parent entities (where safety incentives and operational pressure are set)
• Other third parties (fueling errors, negligent ground support, or entities responsible for unsafe conditions)

The goal is to identify who controlled the risk that caused the crash, or worsened the outcome, and prove it with records, engineering analysis, and testimony that holds up under attack.

Damages in Helicopter Crash Cases

Depending on the facts, damages may include:

• Past and future medical expenses.
• Rehabilitation, therapy, and long-term care needs.
• Lost income and diminished earning capacity.
• Pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of enjoyment of life, and pre-impact terror.
• Disability and disfigurement-related losses, including burn-related harm.
• Wrongful death damages for surviving family members.
• Funeral and burial expenses.