Snowmobile Crash Sparks Record-Breaking Payout: Man Awarded $100 Million in Damages After Colliding with US Army Black Hawk Helicopter

When Jeffrey Smith, a snowmobile rider from Massachusetts, was driving on a Worthington thoroughfare at night in March 2019, he not only crashed into an Army Black Hawk helicopter (pictured), but also flew out resulting in serious injury. (Associated Press)

A Massachusetts man was seriously injured when he crashed into an Army Black Hawk helicopter while driving a snowmobile in 2019. Now a judge has awarded him more than $3.3 million (about NT$100 million).

“TASK & PURPOSE” reported on the 24th that Jeffrey Smith hit a helicopter while driving at night in March 2019, and it immediately flew out. This “Black Hawk” belongs to Fort Drum, New York, and landed just before sunset on the rural airfield in Worthington, Massachusetts, which is also used as a snowmobile trail by local riders. Court records show that on the night of the incident, Smith drank two beers and took the prescription drugs Adderall and Suboxone. But a witness testified that Smith was not drunk when he started driving the snowmobile.

In October 2019, Smith filed a lawsuit against the US government, seeking damages of US$9.5 million (approximately NT$300 million) to cover medical expenses, lost wages, and other expenses incurred as a result of’ r collision with the helicopter. Previous court documents showed that as a result of the accident, as well as the collapse of Smith’s left lung, the nerves controlling his diaphragm were paralyzed, and he also lost feeling in his left arm and hand .

US District Court Judge Mark G. Mastroianni ruled on Monday that “the government is 60 percent responsible for the accident and Smith is 40 percent responsible.” During the trial, supporters of Smith’s lawsuit testified that Smith was traveling between 18 and 28 miles (about 28 and 45 kilometers) when he hit the helicopter.

But federal judge Mastroianni disagreed with this statement and ultimately chose to accept the testimony of a US government expert who believed that Smith was driving at a speed that was “not prudent given the circumstances.” Mastroianni discovered that Smith had stopped the snowmobile just before the accident in order to get a better look at the helicopter on the airstrip. But when he didn’t see that, the accelerator pushed the snowmobile to the highest level and accelerated to 65-70 miles per hour (about 105-113 kilometers per hour).

Jeffrey Smith, a Massachusetts man, crashed into a US Army Black Hawk helicopter while riding a snowmobile in 2019, but was also seriously injured. (Associated Press)

“The court found that the government failed to exercise due care and failed to take any action to prevent a camouflaged helicopter from parking on a heavily used snowmobile trail,” Mastroianni wrote in the ruling. clearly poses a risk when it gets dark,” he said, adding that there were no lights or markings on the helicopter and the car park.

However, the court also found that Smith failed to fulfill his obligation to operate the snowmobile safely and avoid injury, including speeding and wearing tinted goggles at night.

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