Shelly Lair-Langenbau
There appears to be a settlement in the lawsuit involving the fatal crash of a medical helicopter in north-central Iowa three years ago.
The helicopter based out of Mercy Medical Center-North Iowa in Mason City crashed near Ventura on the evening of January 2nd 2013, killing pilot Gene Grell, nurse Shelly Lair-Langenbau, and paramedic Russ Piehl.
Federal investigators blamed the crash on ice on the helicopter and that the chopper was not equipped to fly in winter weather.
Lair-Langenbau’s family sued Med-Trans Corporation, the Texas-based company that operated the helicopter, alleging the company knew the aircraft was not safe for flight in icy conditions and that they encouraged a “fly at any cost” philosophy.
Court documents filed this week in U.S. District Court in Sioux City show the case has been removed from the court calendar and that documents to dismiss the case will be filed by mid-June. The trial was scheduled to begin on June 6th. Details of a settlement though have not been revealed.
By Bob Fisher, KRIB, Mason City