Story ID: 
Judge: FAA Liable for Helicopter Crash
By: Jennifer Harrington
Caption: U.S.
Word Count: 139
U.S. District Court Judge Florence-Marie Cooper has overturned the NTSB’s probable cause of a November 2003 midair between two helicopters at Zamperini Field in Torrance, Calif. Cooper ruled that the government, “acting by and through the conduct of its ATC, their supervisors and the FAA,” caused serious injuries to Robinson R22 student pilot Gavin Heyworth and the death of R44 pilots Robert Bailey and Brett Boyd. The NTSB concluded that Heyworth failed to comply with an ATC clearance, thus causing the midair with the R44. Cooper concluded that the controllers did not conduct a proper position-relief briefing; failed to issue a safety alert to either helicopter; failed to scan the runways to the maximum extent possible; failed to maintain adequate vigilance and positional/situational awareness of airport traffic; and failed to issue clear and concise instructions to Heyworth.