In cloudy and foggy conditions, a corporately owned King Air turboprop aircraft was flying an instrument approach into Somerset, Kentucky when it collided with a radio tower not far from the airport.  Our firm represented the widow of one of the passengers aboard the King Air who had died in the crash.  After obtaining the radar track information for the King Air and voice communications for the pilot, we determined that the instrument approach the King Air had used to navigate to the airport was not operating.  In fact, the instrument approach beacon had been out of service for five years. 

A claim was brought in Federal Court in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania against Air Traffic Control for clearing the King Air for an approach which the controller knew, or should have known, was out of service.  A claim was also brought against the pilot and the corporation who owned the aircraft for failing to discern that the instrument approach was not operational.  A successful settlement was reached between the parties just prior to the trial, which was to take place in Philadelphia.