Helo Pilot's Family Says Faulty Equipment May Have Contributed To His Death

The NTSB reports Michael Russell, an "accomplished" Augusta A109C pilot, was killed on January 28, 2003, when his helicopter impacted terrain about 1.7 NM from Chicago's DuPage Airport.

The pilot's failure to maintain control of the helicopter (file photo of type, above) while maneuvering, resulting in the excessive descent rate and impact with terrain. Factors to the accident included the dark night, low ceiling and reduced visibility at the time of the accident.

Based upon its investigation, the NTSB concluded:

The pilot's failure to maintain control of the helicopter while maneuvering, resulting in the excessive descent rate and impact with terrain. Factors to the accident included the dark night, low ceiling and reduced visibility at the time of the accident.

But that doesn't sound right to Russell's family -- and (of course...) the lawyer who represents them.

"The bottom line for us is it tells us what we already know: There was a loss of control that caused his death. We agree with that 100 percent," attorney Ken Merlino told the Chicago Herald. "This is an extremely experienced pilot."

True enough, Russell, 52, piled up more than 12,000 hours total time as a military chopper pilot in Vietnam. So if the crash wasn't as the NTSB concluded, then what caused Russell to die?

"We are of the belief that there are significant problems with the tail rotor," Merlino told the Chicago paper.

At a coroner's inquest last year, one forensics expert testified Russell planned to leave Air Angels because he was worried about the quality of maintenance. And although the NTSB report found no mechanical fault, it did note,

The tail rotor, tail rotor gearbox, tailboom, and the upper vertical fin were found separated from each other, 20-25 feet from the initial impact point.

So far, Russell's family has filed no lawsuit against Air Angels or Agusta. They have more than a year to make that call before the statute of limitations runs out. But no one has ruled out the possibility that they will file before then.

FMI: www.ntsb.gov/ntsb/brief2.asp?ev_id=20030204X00160&ntsbno=CHI03FA060&akey=1