Grand Canyon helicopter crash lawsuit ends in nearly $100 million settlement
The parents of a British tourist killed in the 2018 Grand Canyon helicopter crash will receive nearly $100 million under a settlement approved by a Nevada judge. Under the deal, Jonathan Udall’s parents will get $24.6 million from Papillon Airways Inc., which operated the tour, and $75 million from Airbus Helicopters SAS, which built the aircraft.
What happened in the 2018 Grand Canyon crash
In February 2018, a Papillon tour helicopter, an Airbus EC130 B4, lost control in strong, turbulent winds over the Grand Canyon. It crashed and burst into flames. Five British tourists died, including Udall, 31, and his newlywed wife, Ellie. The group had traveled from Las Vegas to celebrate a friend’s 30th birthday and the Udalls’ marriage.
Why the fuel system was at the center of the lawsuit
The Udall family’s lawsuit argued the helicopter was unsafe because it lacked a crash-resistant fuel system. Without one, the fuel tank ruptured and ignited on impact. Udall suffered burns over 90% of his body and died in the hospital 12 days later.
“The Udall family wants to shine a spotlight on this issue so the industry will take note and voluntarily seek to correct this public health issue. They don’t want anyone else to go through what their son went through in an otherwise survivable accident—not a broken bone. He would have walked away,” said [attorney’s full name], a lawyer for the family.
FAA rules on crash-resistant fuel systems
In 2020, the Federal Aviation Administration began requiring crash-resistant fuel systems on newly built helicopters. Older aircraft were grandfathered in, so many helicopters still flying today don’t have them.
