Hoover v. Bell Helicopter Textron

A Bell Jet Ranger helicopter (Bell 206B3) crashed in the Ruby Mountains of Nevada. The passengers were spending the Easter weekend on a heli-ski vacation with Frank Wells, President of Disney, and other friends. Mr. Schuster represented Mike Hoover, the sole survivor of the crash and an Academy Award-winning documentary filmmaker. He also represented the estate of Hoover’s wife, Beverly Johnson, who died in the crash and who had been one of the most prominent mountaineers in the nation. Frank Wells, Paul Scannell, a heli-ski guide, and Dave Walton, the pilot, also were killed.

Expert witnesses concluded that the crash was caused by a design defect in the Jet Ranger. Engine flameout could occur when small amounts of snow were ingested by the intake of the jet engine. Bell had not installed an auto-relite as standard equipment in the helicopter, a safety measure that would have allowed the engine to re-lite after it had been extinguished by the snow.

The case was settled before trial for a confidential amount, but after the settlement Hoover and Schuster sent letters to all owners of Bell 206B3 helicopters warning them of the circumstances that led to this tragedy. A card was included with the letter that could be sent to Bell to request specific information about its test data on engine flameouts from snow ingestion. They also sent a letter to the president of Bell asking him to personally make sure that changes were made in the design and manufacture of the helicopter. Copies of this letter were sent to a number of associations and groups so that if a similar tragedy occurred, it would be very clear that Bell had been specifically asked to incorporate the safety measures. The efforts made in the case and the warnings to the public of the safety risks after it was settled resulted in the case being honored as a finalist for the Steven J. Sharp Public Service Award by the American Association for Justice. Bradley L. Booke was co-counsel with Mr. Schuster.