A Montana federal judge has ordered Kaman Aerospace Corp. to pay 10.5% interest on a substantial portion of a $22 million jury verdict tied to a fatal 2020 helicopter crash, tightening the financial toll on the aircraft manufacturer after jurors found a manufacturing defect caused the tragedy.
In a ruling Friday, U.S. Chief District Judge Brian Morris said Kaman must pay interest on $12 million of the total verdict, covering the destroyed K-1200 K-Max helicopter and three others that Central Copters Inc. later sold at a loss following the disaster.
The interest, which continues to accrue, stems from an Aug. 24, 2020 crash in Oregon’s Mount Hood National Forest, where veteran pilot Thomas Duffy, 40, lost control of the K-Max helicopter while battling the White River wildfire. Duffy, described as a “world-class rescue pilot,” died in the crash.
A Fatal Flight: Manufacturing Defect Found
Central Copters, which operated under contract with the U.S. Forest Service, sued Kaman, alleging that servo flaps on the rotor blades—key components controlling blade pitch—had failed due to poor manufacturing.
A Montana jury agreed in May, finding that while the servo flaps were not defectively designed, they were defectively manufactured, leading to the catastrophic failure.
The $22 million verdict covered:
