Sacramento, CAA court of appeal has limited the federal statue of repose in its ruling in a helicopter crash lawsuit. The federal statute of repose protects aircraft manufacturers from product liability lawsuits if a defective aircraft or aircraft part is more than 18 years old when the crash occurs. The court, however, ruled in Rogers v. Bell Helicopter Textron, Inc that the repose statute does not apply when the claim involves errors in maintenance instructions.
Alika Rogers filed a lawsuit against Bell Helicopter Textron Inc., alleging that the helicopter crash she was involved in in 2005 was the result of improper maintenance instructions. In making their decision, the justices reinstated Rogers' suit against the defendant, citing cases in other jurisdictions that have found the maintenance manual is not a "part" of a helicopter.