PHILADELPHIA – The families of six members of the Canadian Armed Forces who were killed in a helicopter crash off the coast of Greece have launched litigation against the helicopter’s American manufacturer, Sikorsky Aircraft, charging it with defectively designing the aircraft and causing the fatal crash.
The suit was brought on July 10 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. The plaintiffs are:
• Joanne Cousins (on behalf of the Estate of Matthew Cousins and on behalf of his DOHSA beneficiaries) of Harbour, Nova Scotia, Canada;
• Tanya Cowbrough (on behalf of the Estate of Abbigail Cowbrough and on behalf of her DOHSA beneficiaries) of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada;
• Kyle Hagen (on behalf of the Estate of Kevin Hagen and on behalf of his DOHSA beneficiaries) of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada;
• Amanda MacDonald (on behalf of the Estate of Brenden Ian MacDonald and on behalf of his DOHSA beneficiaries) of Eastern Passage, Nova Scotia, Canada;
• Kathryn Bowen (on behalf of the Estate of Maxime Miron-Morin and on behalf of his DOHSA beneficiaries) of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada; and
• Michael Custance (on behalf of the Estate of Matthew Pyke and on behalf of his DOHSA beneficiaries) of Valley, Nova Scotia, Canada.
The defendants are:
• Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation and Sikorsky International Operations, Inc., both of Stratford, Conn.,
• Helicopter Support, Inc. of Trumbull, Conn.
According to the plaintiffs, Sikorsky, a subsidiary of Lockheed Martin, failed to identify a design flaw in the CH-148 maritime helicopter, which caused the electronic flight system to assume control of the aircraft and crash it into the Ionian Sea on April 29, 2020.
“Reflecting a corporate indifference to safety that placed profits first, the Sikorsky defendants – in the face of missed deadlines and financial penalties – cut corners to rush the CH-148 into service,” the suit says.
Master Cpl. Matthew Cousins, Sub-Lt. Abbigail Cowbrough, Capt. Kevin Hagen, Capt. Brenden MacDonald, Capt. Maxime Miron-Morin and Sub-Lt. Matthew Pyke all perished in the crash.
The plaintiffs brought their suit in a Pennsylvania federal court, where the Sikorsky CH-148 helicopters were manufactured and tested at a now-closed facility in Coatesville.
When Canada’s Department of National Defense was looking to secure a new military helicopter fleet in the 1990’s, Sikorsky attempted to secure their business by offering an electronic flight control system – despite the fact that such a system had never before been utilized in a military helicopter and it had never been certified by the Federal Aviation Administration, the suit says.
According to the lawsuit, Sikorsky analyzed the flight data from the April 2020 crash and determined the electronic flight control system would overtake manual control of the helicopter when pilots were making “significant pedal and cyclic inputs” while operating in autopilot mode, as the decedents were on the day of the crash.
Specifically, the decedents were performing a low-altitude maneuver commonly used during rescue or combat and believed they would be able to override the electronic flight control system without disabling it, if necessary.
But that was not to be, and the suit alleges that Sikorsky violated industry standards and practices by failing to create a warning system for such an event and failing to design the flight director, so that it would automatically disengage if the pilots went beyond what the company tested for.
“The Sikorsky defendants were aware or should have been aware of the potential catastrophic consequences of an unsafe design, of inaccurate product information, and/or inaccurate or inadequate flight instructions for their CH-148 helicopter,” the suit states.
“Despite their awareness of the consequences of their actions, the Sikorsky defendants marketed a helicopter which they knew was unsafe, they deliberately misrepresented the capacity and operational characteristics of their CH-148s, they ignored field experience that documented the unsafe condition of their product and they provided inaccurate and dangerous instructions to the owners and pilots of CH-148 helicopters. The Sikorsky defendants have prioritized their sales and profits over the safety of the passengers and pilots of their CH-148 helicopters.”
For 12 counts of survival under Pennsylvania state law and wrongful death under the federal Death on the High Seas Act, the plaintiffs are seeking compensatory and punitive damages against each of the defendants, jointly and severally, in an amount greater than $75,000, together with delay damages, interest, costs of suit and such other relief that the Court deems just.
The plaintiffs are represented by Stephen E. Raynes of Raynes & Lawn, in Philadelphia.
The defendants have not yet obtained legal counsel.
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania case 2:23-cv-02629
From the Pennsylvania Record: Reach Courts Reporter Nicholas Malfitano at nick.malfitano@therecordinc.com