Families File Lawsuit Against EAA for 2023 Midair

The lawsuit alleges the accident was the result of the organization not following published FAA procedures for the airspace.

Thursday, August 01, 2024 at 06:57 PM ET

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Flight tracks of the helicopter (red) and gyroplane (yellow) involved in a 2023 midair in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. [Courtesy: NTSB]

Key Takeaways:

Families of pilots killed in a 2023 AirVenture midair collision are suing the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA), alleging the organization operated its "Fun Fly Zone" without proper FAA authorization and failed to enforce its own safety rules.
The lawsuit specifically claims the EAA allowed a gyrocopter pilot to continue flying despite repeatedly performing a prohibited 360-degree turn, which led to the collision.
While the NTSB's final report identified the gyrocopter pilot's error and prohibited maneuver as the probable cause, the EAA has since adopted new "one strike, you're out" procedures for the Fun Fly Zone for future AirVenture events.

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The families of pilots killed in a midair collision of a helicopter and gyrocopter at AirVenture in 2023 have filed a lawsuit against the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) alleging the accident was the result of the organization not following published FAA procedures for the airspace.

The accident happened on July 29, 2023, when both aircraft were operating in the EAA’s “Fun Fly Zone,” (FFZ), which consists of a grass runway in the ultralight display area of the EAA AirVenture show grounds at Wittman Field (KOSH) in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. In the area were ultralights, light planes, powered parachutes and trikes, hot-air balloons, homebuilt rotorcraft, and light sport aircraft (LSA).

Meg Godlewski

Meg Godlewski has been an aviation journalist for more than 24 years and a CFI for more than 20 years. If she is not flying or teaching aviation, she is writing about it. Meg is a founding member of the Pilot Proficiency Center at EAA AirVenture and excels at the application of simulation technology to flatten the learning curve. Follow Meg on Twitter @2Lewski.