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Mason v. Schweizer Aircraft Corp.11/14/2002
Injured helicopter pilot appeals summary judgment in favor of defendant who supplied helicopter maintenance manuals to owner of aircraft. AFFIRMED.
The appellant, Kevin Mason, was injured when the helicopter he was piloting crashed. Mason then brought suit against the appellee, Schweizer Aircraft Corporation, which had provided maintenance support materials to Mason's employer, the owner of the aircraft. The district court granted Schweizer's motion for summary judgment, ruling that Mason's suit was barred under the statute of repose found in the General Aviation Revitalization Act of 1994 (GARA), 49 U.S.C. § 40101 note (1994). Mason appealed. Finding no error, we affirm.
I. Background Facts and Proceedings.
On August 19, 1996, Kevin Mason, a Cedar Rapids police officer, was seriously injured when the helicopter he was piloting experienced complete engine failure and crashed. An investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board determined that the probable cause of the crash was two plastic pieces that had broken off the air filter housing and entered the air induction tubes, blocking the flow of air and fuel into the engine.
The helicopter, a Model 269A, had been manufactured by Hughes Tool Company-Aircraft Division and sold to the United States Army in 1968. Hughes Tool Company held the type certificate for the Model 269A, which had been issued by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). See generally 49 U.S.C. § 44704(a) (stating type certificate is issued upon a finding by the FAA "that the aircraft . . . is properly designed and manufactured, performs properly, and meets the regulations and minimum standards prescribed under section 44701(a)").
Discovery in this case disclosed that in the 1960s there were reports of engine stoppages in the model 269A, presumably from a defect in the air filter housing. As a result, Hughes Tool added stiffening beads to the side of the housing to prevent cracking, incorporating this design change into production components in 1966. Hughes Tool received no further reports of similar problems following implementation of this change. For reasons not disclosed in the record, the air filter housing of the helicopter involved in the accident at issue here did not have the stiffening beads.
After some intermediate transfers of the type certificate, Schweizer purchased the Model 269 product line, including the FAA-issued type certificate, in 1986 from McDonnell Douglas Helicopter Company. Although Schweizer has never manufactured a model 269A helicopter, it has made 269C and 269D series helicopters under the type certificate purchased from McDonnell Douglas. In addition, it has provided maintenance support materials and services for the 269A model to various subscribers, one of them being the City of Cedar Rapids aviation department.
Prior to Mason's accident, the City had paid a fee to subscribe to certain Schweizer publications, including Schweizer's Handbook of Maintenance Instruction for Hughes 269A Helicopters. The subscription service arguably promoted the use of Schweizer for purchase of replacement parts. As part of the subscription service, Schweizer's personnel were available to consult with the City's mechanics by telephone. The record shows that City aviation maintenance personnel relied upon the handbook for guidance in inspecting and maintaining the helicopter.
Schweizer had a procedure in place to encourage operators to provide reports on material component part failures or malfunctions, and received such reports daily. Prior to this accident, it had never received a report of engine stoppage due to air filter housing cracks or failures. There was evidenc
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