Rocky Mountain Helicopters has been awarded $180,000 by a federal jury in Salt Lake City for damages from a 1992 helicopter crash in Alaska.
The award was only about one-tenth the amount the Provo-based helicopter company had asked the jury to assess in damages against a Canadian company, Standard Aero. In its lawsuit, Rocky Mountain claimed it sustained losses in excess of $1 million.Standard, which overhauled and inspected the engine a year before the accident, was pleased with the verdict. Standard's lawyer, Peter Christensen, said Friday, "To us, it's a good result."
The jury in U.S. District Judge Tena Campbell's court determined that Rocky Mountain suffered $900,000 in damages. But the panel also attributed 80 percent of the liability for the accident to the helicopter engine's manufacturer, Textron Lycoming of Rhode Island.
Rocky Mountain settled out-of-court with Textron in September 1995 for an undisclosed sum.
Rocky Mountain owned the Bell helicopter that went down in March 1992 near Hobart Bay, injuring a pilot and copilot. An investigation showed a fatigue crack had developed in the engine, which eventually failed.