Airplane and Helicopter Crashes
⚖ Airplane and Helicopter Crashes
Houston Airplane & Helicopter Crash Attorney
An airplane or helicopter crash is one of the most devastating events a family can face — sudden, catastrophic, and almost always followed by an immediate, well-funded response from the aircraft operator's insurers and investigators, all working to control the narrative before you've even had a chance to grieve. You need a lawyer who can move just as fast, and who genuinely understands how these investigations unfold.
Tom Stilwell has handled aviation and helicopter crash litigation for more than 25 years — including years spent as defense counsel for major airlines and aircraft manufacturers, and as a national conference speaker and published author on aviation regulation. He knows how the NTSB and FAA investigate a crash, how aircraft manufacturers and operators respond, and how insurers evaluate catastrophic and fatal aviation claims, because he has been on all sides of that process.
⚖ Airplane and Helicopter Crashes
The Real Scope of the Risk
Aircraft and helicopter crashes are rare, but when they happen, the consequences are almost always catastrophic. The data bears this out, particularly in the helicopter operations that support Gulf Coast oil and gas work — a sector deeply tied to the Houston region:
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178+ crashes documented. A peer-reviewed study of helicopter crashes linked to Gulf of Mexico oil and gas operations documented at least 178 crashes between 1983 and 2009 — an average of 6.6 per year, climbing to 8.2 per year between 2000 and 2009.
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139 fatalities. Only 41 of those killed were pilots — meaning the overwhelming majority of those who died were passengers.
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Leading causes: pilot error (47%), mechanical failure (38%), and bad weather (16%).
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Survival equipment failures. In 15 water-landing crashes, helicopters sank because flotation devices failed to deploy automatically or manually.
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Transportation is the leading cause of offshore worker deaths. A separate CDC study of offshore oilfield worker fatalities found that transportation — not the drilling work itself — was the leading cause of death industry-wide, with 128 fatalities from 2003–2010, 75% of which involved helicopter transport.
These numbers reflect a hard truth: operating aircraft safely in variable weather and high-pressure commercial environments demands real discipline, and time pressure too often leads operators, pilots, and companies to make the wrong call. Despite FAA- and NTSB-mandated inspection and maintenance requirements, mechanical failure remained a factor in nearly 40% of the crashes studied — and safety equipment didn't always perform as designed when it mattered most.
Common Causes of Airplane and Helicopter Crashes
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Pilot error — including poor decision-making under time or scheduling pressure, and flying into known hazardous weather
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Mechanical failure — engine, rotor, control system, or structural failures, often tied to inadequate maintenance or manufacturing defects
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Weather-related factors — turbulence, wind shear, icing, or fog contributing to loss of control
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Inadequate maintenance — deferred repairs, improper inspections, or failure to follow manufacturer service bulletins
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Operator and company pressure — schedules and productivity demands (especially common in oil-and-gas helicopter transport) that push crews to fly in conditions they should have declined
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Defective parts or design — component or systemic failures traceable to the aircraft or parts manufacturer
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Failed safety and survival equipment — flotation devices, emergency locator transmitters, or restraint systems that don't perform as designed
Who Can Be Held Responsible
Aviation crash litigation frequently involves multiple potentially responsible parties, including:
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The airline, charter operator, or helicopter operating company
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The aircraft manufacturer
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Component and parts manufacturers
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Maintenance and repair contractors
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The pilot and flight crew's employer
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In some cases, air traffic control or airport authorities
Identifying every responsible party requires immediate, thorough investigation — aircraft wreckage, maintenance records, flight data and cockpit voice recorders, and NTSB findings all need to be secured and reviewed before evidence is lost, altered, or explained away.
What Compensation May Be Available
Aviation crash survivors and families of those killed may be entitled to significant compensation, including:
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Medical expenses for treatment, surgery, and rehabilitation
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Lost wages and lost earning capacity
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Physical pain and mental anguish
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Permanent impairment or disfigurement
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Wrongful death damages, including loss of financial support, loss of companionship and society, mental anguish, and loss of inheritance for surviving family members
Because aviation crashes frequently involve federal regulation, multiple corporate defendants, and sometimes international treaties like the Montreal Convention for international flights, these cases require an attorney who can navigate all of it at once.
Why Speed and Experience Matter After a Crash
In the hours after a crash, the aircraft operator, manufacturer, and their insurers are already mobilizing investigators and legal teams. Evidence can be moved, aircraft can be repaired or scrapped, and witnesses' accounts can fade. The NTSB will conduct its own investigation, but that process serves a regulatory purpose — not necessarily your family's need for accountability and compensation.
Stilwell Injury Law moves immediately to preserve evidence, engage the right accident reconstruction and aviation experts, and deal directly with the NTSB, FAA, and insurance companies who will otherwise control every piece of information about what happened. The days and weeks after a crash are disorienting, with far more questions than answers — we're here to walk your family through every step.
⚖ Free & Confidential Consultation
Lost a Loved One or Seriously Injured in an Aviation Crash? Call Stilwell Injury Law.
These cases move fast, and so do we. We work on a contingency fee basis: if we don't win, you don't pay.
Call (832) 274-6749 or email tom@tsinjurylaw.com for a free, confidential consultation.