Small Aircraft Accidents
People who drive in high-speed traffic every day fear air travel sufficiently that they load up on bar drinks or Benadryl to stay calm during the flight, when the risk of getting injured as a passenger on a commercial aircraft is substantially lower than the risk of getting injured as a passenger in a car. Websites about mishaps on flights operated by major commercial airlines are as popular a genre of online content as short form videos about life hacks. Despite this, most aviation accidents involve the smallest planes. These tend to be under the control of less experienced pilots. If you can afford to buy a plane, it doesn’t cost much more to learn to fly one. Even if you can’t, there is money to be made by flying the tiny planes of rich people while they sit a few feet behind you and get sloppy drunk as you guide the plane through a safe landing. To get a license to fly a plane requires training and testing, and you can learn at any certified flight school. A man who was studying at a flight training school has sued the school after he got injured during a test flight, an accident he attributes to his instructor’s negligence. If you have gotten injured in an accident on a small, chartered aircraft or while training to be a pilot, contact a Columbia premises liability lawyer.
Student Pilot Sues Aviation School After Suffering Injuries in Rough Landing
Steven Schwartz lives in New York, but he enrolled in the Leadership in Flight Training (LIFT) Academy in Myrtle Beach to get his pilot’s license, and he traveled to South Carolina when his program of study required it. He had reached the stage of his training where he had to complete a series of practice flights, with an instructor present, before he could make solo flights. In February 2025, Schwartz was scheduled to complete a flight from Myrtle Beach International Airport to Conway-Horry County Airport.
The weather was windy, and the school had canceled several flights that weekend because of it. Schwartz expressed concerns about the weather conditions and about whether the plane was airworthy, but according to Schwartz’s lawsuit, the instructor insisted that they proceed with the flight as scheduled instead of postponing it. The winds did not slow down during the flight, and the plane eventually made a rough landing at Conway-Horry County Airport, bouncing several times as it landed. The rough landing caused Schwartz to sustain injuries which, according to his lawsuit, will cause lifelong symptoms. He sued LIFT Academy, citing premises liability, the legal doctrine that businesses are responsible for preventable injuries suffered by their paying customers because of unsafe conditions at the place of business. He alleges that LIFT Academy instructors routinely pressured students to undertake dangerous flights.
Let Us Help You Today
The personal injury lawyers at the Stanley Law Group can help you get adequate compensation after a small aircraft accident. Contact The Stanley Law Group in Columbia, South Carolina or call (803)799-4700 for a free initial consultation.
Source:
myrtlebeachonline.com/news/local/article309466470.html
