Good Samaritan Claims He Was Injured Helping The Co-Pilot Get Out Of The Airplane

A Greenwood, IN man who was among the first on the scene of an airplane accident near Greenwood Municipal Airport (KHFY) in July, 2014 has filed a lawsuit claiming he was injured during the rescue. The suit names the estate of the pilot, as well as the co-pilot who was rescued, as defendants.

In its probable cause report, the NTSB said that the private pilot, 46-year-old Bill Gilliland, and flight instructor Mike Elliot were repositioning the airplane for an annual inspection, and the Gilliand planned to receive instrument flight training during the trip.

Witnesses reported that the engine sounded good as the airplane taxied to the runway and during the engine run-up. However, several witnesses reported observing blue smoke trailing the airplane at the beginning of the takeoff and hearing the engine "popping" and "misfiring."

The airplane, a Mooney M20M according to the NTSB, was 50 to 100 ft above the ground and about one-quarter of the way down the 5,100-ft-long runway when its nose lowered slightly. Witnesses stated that they thought the pilot was going to land the airplane back on the remaining runway, but the airplane's nose then rose, and the airplane continued climbing. The airplane was described as being slow and "wallowing," with the nose pitching up and down slightly as it continued to climb to a maximum altitude of about 100 to 150 ft above the ground. The right wing dropped, and the airplane descended, contacting a garage and two houses before coming to rest in a residential backyard where a postimpact fire ensued.

A postaccident examination of the airplane, engine, and engine components did not reveal any anomalies that would have precluded normal operation.

The NTSB determined that the probable cause of the accident was a partial loss of engine power for reasons that could not be determined because postaccident examination of the airframe and engine did not reveal any anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. Also causal to the accident was the pilots' decision to continue the takeoff despite early indications of engine anomalies.

Stanley Breeden was among the witnesses to the accident, and went to assist after the plane went down. He and several others were able to extricate Elliot from the wreckage, but could not get Gilliland out of the plane.

Breeden is now suing Gilliland's estate, Elliot, and Groh Aviation and Poplar Grove Airmotive, claiming he suffered serious, permanent injury, pain and suffering, mental and emotional upset and lost wages. Those injuries and damages were not specified.

(Image from file, not accident airplane)

FMI: www.ntsb.gov/_layouts/ntsb.aviation/brief.aspx?ev_id=20140711X24050&key=1