Gary C. Robb, of Robb & Robb LLC, discusses industry's alarming safety issues
Kansas City, MO (PRWEB) February 5, 2009 -- An article in today's Wall Street Journal reporting the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB)'s hearings this week on helicopter safety, quotes well-known Kansas City personal injury attorney Gary C. Robb, of Robb & Robb LLC, regarding the reasons behind the industry's recent safety problems. The hearings, which begin in Washington, D.C. this week, are in response to a recent series of emergency medical helicopter crashes that have claimed at least 35 lives since 2007.
The Wall Street Journal quotes Mr. Robb as pointing out that "the industry has been in a state of denial about the problems for some time." The Journal article, in recognizing Mr. Robb as an attorney "who has won some of the largest damage awards against the industry," also references university professors and executives within the helicopter industry.
The odds of being in a serious helicopter accident are roughly 300 times greater than for U.S. airline passengers. Although helicopters require significantly more maintenance per hour than airplanes due to the extensive vibration and peculiar aerodynamics, FAA rules and oversight focus on voluntary industry compliance. This week's NTSB hearings are expected to ratchet up pressure on the FAA to impose stricter safety standards on the helicopter industry.
In 1995, aviation attorneys Robb & Robb obtained the two highest verdicts in helicopter crash cases in the United States: a $350 million jury verdict on behalf of the helicopter pilot who experienced in-flight engine failure (Barnett v. LaSociete Anonome v. Turbomeca France, 963 W. 2d 939, Western District of Missouri Court of Appeals); and a $70 million jury verdict on behalf of a 20-year-old woman who was a passenger on board that same helicopter (Letz v. Turboneca France, 975 S.W. 2d 155, Western District of Missouri Court of Appeals). The firm also has the highest settlement in any helicopter crash litigation, a $38 million cash settlement in 2006 involving a young woman who was severely burned when her tour helicopter crashed in the Grand Canyon (Daskal, et. al. v. Aerospetials, Case No. A471961, Clark County District Court, Las Vegas, Nevada).
About Robb & Robb
Robb & Robb LLC was founded in 1984 by Kansas City personal injury attorneys Gary C. Robb and Anita Porte Robb. The firm has handled many precedent-setting, high-profile and complex cases in the fields of aviation law, hazardous product liability, personal injury, medical malpractice, wrongful death, premises liability and trucking and transportation liability.
Robb & Robb has been recognized by national media and a number of professional organizations as the leading helicopter crash law firm aviation lawyers in the United States. They have received both local Missouri and national media attention, including featured spots on the CBS Evening News, Good Morning America, NBC's Today Show, CBS This Morning, Larry King Live, CNN.com, AOL Online, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, The National Law Journal, Lawyers Weekly USA, BNA Reporter, The Missouri Lawyers Weekly and The Kansas City Star.
For more information on Robb & Robb LLC, please visit www.robbrobb.com.
See Also:
- A Perfect Storm for Harassment Liability?
- QlikTech Positioned in Visionaries Quadrant in 2009 Business Intelligence Platforms Magic Quadrant
- McCarthy T�trault LLP Empowers Assistants, Leverages Time Zones and Optimizes Ratios Via BigHand Software
- myStaffingPro Applicant Tracking System Optimizes Client Career Portals
- For the Third Year in a Row, Absolutely Health Care is Awarded a WEDDLE's User's Choice Award
[Via Legal / Law]
No comments:
Post a Comment