The family of a high-profile Canadian businessman who died with his son when the helicopter he was piloting fell from the sky due to an issue with the rotor blades is suing the US-based manufacturer of the helicopter for US $50 million.
Stéphane Roy was at the pinnacle of his career as chief executive of Savoura, a Quebec-based farming company that produces tomatoes and strawberries for the North American market, when he died in the July 2019 crash.
With him at his side, Stéphane was flying the helicopter on a routine flight through a remote nature reserve in Quebec, but the pair never arrived at their destination as planned, and the following day, father and son were officially reported as missing.
The bizarre disappearance led to a massive search and rescue operation that involved the Canadian Coast Guard, armed forces, and volunteer search and rescue organizations who scoured huge swathes of land in an attempt to find Stéphane and his 15-year-old son.
Two weeks after the pair were first reported missing, search and rescue workers found the crashed helicopter in a remote, densely wooded area near Lac Valtrie, Quebec, after using cell phone records to narrow down their search.
Both Stéphane and his son were found dead at the scene.
Accident investigators later concluded that one of the rotor blades of helicopter was found to have “multiple adhesive failures,” which “resulted in the breakup of certain sections of the joint between the lower skin and the spar, causing humidity to infiltrate below the skin, weakening the adhesive bond joint over time.”
It is this failure, the Canadian Transport Safety Board (TSB) said in its final report, that caused the helicopter to fall from the sky.
The California-based Robinson Helicopter Company made the helicopter, which has faced at least one other lawsuit about defective manufacturing leading to a fatal crash.
“My family and I are determined to uncover the complete truth behind this tragic event that took my brother and nephew,” commented Daniel Roy, brother of Stéphane and executor of his estate.
“Investigations by the Transportation Safety Board and independent experts have uncovered significant negligence by Robinson Helicopter. Without accountability, tragedies like this could happen again. We discovered numerous similar incidents involving Robinson aircraft.”
The Roy family accuses Robinson of gross negligence, although their attempts at grilling the manufacturer in court have faced several major hurdles.
An initial attempt to sue Robinson in a California court was challenged by the manufacturer, who said it would be better heard in Quebec. After legal tussles, a California appeals court agreed that the lawsuit should be moved to Quebec.
That decision has not, however, stopped the Roy family from pursuing their case in the United States, and on Friday, a new suit is being filed in California with the help of Motley Rice, a leading aviation law firm.
“A closer look at Robinson Helicopter Company reveals numerous tragedies involving similar Robinson aircraft, including the one my brother piloted,” Roy said following the latest attempt to sue Robinson in the US.
“Many families were shattered on that tragic day in July 2019, and we will do everything in our power to ensure these tragedies caused by unacceptable negligence come to an end.”
The Robinson Helicopter Company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
