Rodgers v. Beechcraft Corp.

248 F. Supp. 3d 1158, 2017 WL 1193059, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 46416
CourtDistrict Court, N.D. Oklahoma
DecidedMarch 29, 2017
DocketCase No. 15-CV-0129-CVE-PJC
StatusPublished

This text of 248 F. Supp. 3d 1158 (Rodgers v. Beechcraft Corp.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, N.D. Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Rodgers v. Beechcraft Corp., 248 F. Supp. 3d 1158, 2017 WL 1193059, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 46416 (N.D. Okla. 2017).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

CLAIRE V. EAGAN, UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

Now before the Court are Defendants’ Motion for Determination of Law (Dkt. #89) and Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment and Supporting Memorandum (Dkt. # 94). Defendants argue that plaintiffs lack admissible evidence to support their claims of manufacturer’s products liability and negligence. Plaintiffs respond there is evidence supporting an inference that the aircraft manufactured and serviced by defendants had a defective electrical system, alternate landing gear, and instruction manual, and these defects rendered the aircraft unreasonably dangerous as a matter of Oklahoma law.

I.

Beechcraft Corporation (Beechcraft) is a Kansas corporation with its principal place of business in Kansas, which designs, manufactures, and sells commercial general aviation aircraft. Dkt. # 94-4, at 1. Beech-craft designed and manufactured the Beech Premier 390 jet airplane (Premier 390), and the Premier 390 aircraft identified as RB-226 was manufactured in 2008. Dkt. # 129, at 4. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a standard airworthiness certifícate for RB-226 on March 13, 2008. Dkt. # 94-5, at 4. Hawker Beechcraft Global Customer Support, LLC (HBGCS) is a Kansas limited liability company, which provides general aviation inspection and maintenance services under the trade name Hawker Beechcraft Services. Dkt. #94-4, at 2. HBGCS performed maintenance on RB-226, but it was not the only company that worked on RB-226. Dkt. # 94-7.

On March 17, 2013, Wesley Caves was the pilot of RB-226, flying the aircraft from Tulsa, Oklahoma to South Bend, Indiana. Dkt. # 129, at 4. James Steven Davis was in the front right passenger seat of the aircraft. Dkt. # 94-6, at 1. Davis had a pilot’s license, but he was not rated to fly a jet aircraft or the Premier 390, and his last recorded flight as a pilot was in 2008. Id. at 4. James Rodgers and Christopher Evans were passengers in the rear passenger seats. Dkt. # 129, at 4. The Pilot’s Operating Manual (POM) states that:

It is mandatory that you fully understand the contents of this publication and the other operating and maintenance manuals which accompany the airplane; that FAA requirements for ratings, certifications and review be scrupulously complied with and that [1162]*1162only persons who are properly licensed and rated, and thoroughly familiar with the contents of the FAA Approved Airplane Flight Manual, Avionics Manual and [POM] be allowed to operate the airplane.

Dkt. #94-8, at 10. During the flight, Caves told Davis that the landing gear was designed to handle 13,000 pounds of weight, but that Caves personally had no problem flying the aircraft at 13,500 pounds. Dkt. # 94-9, at 12. The transcript of the cockpit voice recorder (CVR) also shows that an overspeed warning sounded twice, which meant the aircraft was flying in excess of the maximum specified air speed. Id, at 15, 25. Caves allowed Davis to operate the controls of the aircraft, and he directed Davis to pull back on the throttle. Id. at 15-16. Davis told Caves that he was “uncomfortable,” because the “throttle up throttle down” was setting off an alarm. Id. at 16. At-about 16:13:16 on the CVR, Caves directed Davis to pull back on the throttle to reduce the aircraft’s speed, and Davis said “just pull down on it?” Id at 32. The transcript shows that numerous systems began to shut down, and Caves said “uh-oh” and “we are dead stick.” Id at 33. Davis had pulled the throttle past the stops to “CUTOFF” which shut down both engines. To move the throttle lever into “CUTOFF,” Davis had to pull the throttle lever all the way down and pull up on finger locks that' would have prevented the throttle lever from moving into the “CUTOFF” position. Dkt. # 94-8, at 3.

During normal flight conditions, the aircraft uses two engine-driven generators to supply electricity to the aircraft, but the aircraft also has a main battery and a standby battery to provide electrical power in emergency situations. Id. at 6. The generators shut down when the engines are shut off, and the power supply for the aircraft switches from the generators to the main battery. Dkt. # 94-12, at 9. The aircraft has a battery switch that can be set in “ON” or “STANDBY” position. Dkt. #94-5. at 2. Placing the switch in- the “ON” position selects the main battery, and moving the switch to “STANBY” selects the standby battery. Dkt. # 94-12, at 12. The battery switch should be placed in the “ON” position during normal- flight operations, because the main battery is not drained when the generators are providing electrical power. Dkt. #94-8, at 7. The standby battery is used only when there is no other power source, and the POM states that the standby battery will supply 150 watts of power for at least 30 minutes. Id. Electrical power to many components is cut off when the aircraft is operating under battery power, because it is necessary to conserve power to operate components more critical for landing the aircraft. Id.

The CVR .cut off approximately two minutes after Davis shut off the engines. Dkt. # 94-9. After the CVR stopped recording, Caves was able to restart the left engine, and the Premier 390 is designed to fly with only one engine. Dkt. # 94-8, at 12.’ In order to restart the left engine, Caves was required to use engine 'start and ignition switches powered by the pilot’s essential bus, part of the electrical load distribution system. Dkt. # 94-12, at 9. Experts for plaintiffs and defendants also heard a sound on the CVR that has been identified as the starter motor used to restart the engines, and- the starter motor ■ receives power from the pilot’s essential bus. Dkt. #94-12, at 9; Dkt. #94-14, at 12. The starter motor must have been functional, because Caves was able to restart the left engine. Id. There is no dispute that, many other components of the aircraft that receive power from the pilot’s essential bus were functioning after Davis cut off the engines. Dkt. # 94, at 17-18; Dkt. # 158, at 14. Even- though Caves was able to restart the left engine, he did not reset the left electrical generator and the aircraft [1163]*1163was operating on battery power. Dkt. #94-12, at 12. Plaintiffs’ expert, Frank Graham, believes that Caves moved the battery switch from “ON” to “STANDBY” based on an eight second interruption in electrical power noted on the CVR transcript. Dkt. # 94-18, at 2. Defendants’ expert, Robert Winn, provided four possible reasons for the interruption of electrical power, one of which is moving the battery switch into the “STANDBY” position. Dkt. # 119-7, at 7-8. The instructions for operating the aircraft after a dual engine failure require that the battery switch be kept in the “ON” position when attempting to restart the engines and generators, but the battery switch was found to be in the “STANDBY” position in the aircraft wreckage. Dkt. # 94-6, at Dkt. # 94-10, at 7. Plaintiffs dispute that this evidence necessarily means that Caves placed the battery switch in the “STANDBY” position, because the switch could have moved during the crash. Dkt. # 158-2, .at 10.

Caves was able to navigate the aircraft to the South Bend airport and he attempted to land, but air traffic control (ATC) directed Caves to pull up because his main landing gear was not extended. Dkt. # 94-6, at 3. Caves pulled up and attempted a second landing, but he again attempted to land with only the nose landing gear, extended. Id.

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Bluebook (online)
248 F. Supp. 3d 1158, 2017 WL 1193059, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 46416, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/rodgers-v-beechcraft-corp-oknd-2017.