When a small plane crashed on Deer Forest Road in southern Suffolk on Monday afternoon, its pilot and two passengers became the victims of the 14th general aviation accident in Virginia in the past 12 months.
The Virginian-Pilot is reporting that only the pilot of the Mooney M20F four-seater, James Williams Beauchamp, suffered injuries requiring medical attention. Beauchamp reported experiencing engine problems shortly after taking off from Suffolk Municipal Airport and attempted an emergency landing.
The Mooney M20F and similar planes have a good safety record, according to a review performed by the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association. However, one of the M20F’s sister crafts, a Mooney M20D, was involved in a fatal crash in Clintwood, Virginia (VA) this May.
My colleagues and I at Shapiro, Cooper, Lewis & Appleton have decades of experience representing people injured by faulty equipment or others’ negligence. And one of the partners, Jim Lewis, is a private pilot who can bring that expertise to bear in any instance of airplane accident injuries. The Clintwood crash is still under investigation, as is the Suffolk crash. If a mechanical problem is found to have contributed to either accident, further investigation would be needed to determine whether the problem involved the plane’s manufacture or maintenance.
About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper, Lewis & Appleton personal injury law firm is based in Virginia (VA), near the Northeast North Carolina (NC) border. Lawyers with the firm practice primarily in the southeastern U.S. and handle injury law cases, including car, truck and railroad accidents, medical negligence cases, and more. The firm’s website is hsinjurylaw.com. Lawyers with Shapiro, Cooper Lewis & Appleton also edit the injury law blogs Virginia Beach Injuryboard, Norfolk Injuryboard, and Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard and have compiled a video library covering many FAQs on personal injury subjects. The firm’s lawyers are licensed in VA, NC, SC, WV, DC and KY.
EJL
