Clifford Law Offices Obtains $4.1 Million Settlement in Helicopter Crash Case
Press Release, 11/08/2001Kevin P. Durkin, partner at Clifford Law Offices, obtained a $4.1 million settlement for the family of a Wilmette photographer who died in a helicopter crash while taking aerial photos.
Yasuo Sato, 62, died while working on a chartered flight over the northwestern suburbs on May 18, 1998. He was aboard the ill-fated flight along with two staff members of the Chicago Futabakai School in Arlington Heights while Sato was taking pictures of the school from the air.
The helicopter took off from Waukegan Municipal Airport. The three passengers and pilot were killed when the 1,600-pound aircraft crashed into a ranch home in suburban Arlington Heights.
The National Transportation Safety Board found the pilot failed to maintain control of the helicopter.
Judge Cheryl A. Starks of the Cook County Circuit Court approved the settlement Tuesday (Nov. 6). The settlement was reached against Rotors in Motion Corporation, a Delaware-based company.
