Air ambulance firm settles federal safety claims lawsuit
DENVER (AP) - The U.S. attorney in Colorado says the nation’s largest air ambulance company has agreed to pay $825,000 to settle a civil suit alleging the firm operated a helicopter with defective safety equipment.
U.S. Attorney Jason Dunn says that Colorado-based Air Methods Corp. allegedly operated an ambulance helicopter with severely corroded pitot tubes in violation of Federal Aviation Administration safety regulations.
Pitot tubes help measure airspeed for pilots of the aircraft.
The defects were found during an aircraft inspection in Florida.
Dunn says Air Methods acknowledged no liability in settling the suit.
Air Methods had no immediate comment.