Walton v. Avco Corp.
| Citation | 383 Pa.Super. 518,557 A.2d 372 |
| Parties | , Prod.Liab.Rep. (CCH) P 12,144 Glenda C. WALTON, As Administratrix Of The Estate Of Dennis Earl McCracken and Glenda D. McCracken and Dana Marie McCracken, Minors, by Glenda C. Walton, their Parent and Natural Guardian, Appellant v. AVCO CORP., Summa Corp., and Executive Helicopters, Inc. (Three Cases). Maeburl TINCHER As Administratrix Of The Estate of Billy James Tincher, James Barry Tincher, Larry Bill Tincher, Kristie Leann Tincher, and Gregory Wayne Tincher by their Parent and Natural Guardian, and Maeburl Tincher In Her Own Right, Appellants, v. AVCO CORP., Summa Corp. and Executive Helicopters, Inc. (Two Cases). Appeal of AVCO CORPORATION. Appeal of SUMMA CORPORATION. (Two Cases). 02274-02278 Phila. 1987 |
| Decision Date | 28 March 1989 |
| Court | Pennsylvania Superior Court |
Brenda M. Flock, Philadelphia, for Avco, appellant in No. 2277, and appellee in No. 2274.
J. Bruce McKissock, Philadelphia, for Summa, appellant in Nos. 2276, 2278, and appellee in Nos. 2274, 2275, 2277.
Before CAVANAUGH, BROSKY and MONTEMURO, JJ.
This case is based upon a tragic event and brings to this Court a series of novel issues in the area of strict products liability. On September 1, 1978, Dennis Earl McCracken was piloting a helicopter near Robbinsville, North Carolina. McCracken was ferrying a passenger, Billy James Tincher, who was an employee of the owner of the helicopter, Phillips and Jordan, Inc. The helicopter had been designed, manufactured and sold by Hughes Helicopter, Inc. (Hughes), a division of Summa Corporation. Hughes 1 had incorporated an engine manufactured by the Avco Corporation (Avco) into the helicopter. Sadly, both McCracken and Tincher lost their lives when the engine in the helicopter seized in mid-flight, causing the aircraft to fall and crash. A subsequent investigation revealed that the accident had occurred due to the failure of an oil pump which was a component of the engine manufactured by Avco.
In November of 1980, complaints were filed against both Avco and Hughes 2 by Glenda C. Walton, as Administratrix of the Estate of Dennis Earl McCracken and Glenda D. McCracken and Dana Marie McCracken, minors, by Glenda C. Walton, their parent and natural guardian, (hereinafter "Waltons"), and by Maeburl Tincher, as Administratrix of the Estate of Billy James Tincher, and James Barry Tincher, Larry Bill Tincher, Kristie Leann Tincher There is no dispute in the present case concerning the claim by the Waltons and the Tinchers, and the subsequent jury finding, that the engine manufactured by Avco was a defective product under Section 402A of the RESTATEMENT (Second) OF TORTS. 4 It is also undisputed that when Avco became aware of the defective construction of its engine, it issued Service Instruction 1341 on July 30, 1976. This service instruction advised of the specific defect in the Avco engine which eventually caused the crash of the McCracken helicopter and detailed a procedure whereby this specific defect could be remedied. 5 Avco listed the time for compliance with Service Instruction 1341 as the next overhaul of the aircraft. Hughes received service instructions from Avco. Unfortunately, Hughes never forwarded or advised Phillips and Jordan, Inc. concerning the contents of Service Instruction 1341, nor did Hughes advise its authorized helicopter service centers about Service Instruction 1341. Phillips and Jordan, Inc. had the McCracken helicopter overhauled on September 14, 1977, thirteen and one half months after Avco had issued Service Instruction 1341. The overhaul was performed by Executive Helicopters, an authorized Hughes Service Center located in Atlanta, Georgia. 6 Due to the fact that Hughes had not advised Executive Helicopters In addition to determining that the Avco engine's defective design was a substantial contributing factor in causing the deaths of McCracken and Tincher, the jury in the instant case also determined that Hughes had failed to warn Phillips and Jordan, Inc. and Executive Helicopters of the engine's defective design and that this failure to warn was a substantial contributing factor in causing the untimely deaths of the two men. This brings us to the first issue which we will address in the appeal.
and Gregory Wayne Tincher, minors, by Maeburl Tincher, their parent and natural guardian, and by Maeburl Tincher in her own right, (hereinafter "Tinchers"). After extensive pretrial [383 Pa.Super. 523] proceedings, the cases were consolidated for trial in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas in September of 1985. Although the suits against Avco and Hughes were originally brought on a number of legal theories, the case was ultimately submitted to the jury on strict products liability theories alone. The jury, finding both Avco and Hughes strictly liable, awarded $891,203.00 to the Waltons and $415,902.00 to the Tinchers. Numerous post-trial motions were filed on behalf of the parties involved in this litigation in November of 1985. The trial court resolved these post-trial motions in a series of orders entered on July 16, 1987. This appeal followed. 3 of Service Instruction 1341, the defect in McCracken's helicopter engine was not remedied. See supra at n. 2.
Following the trial, Hughes sought a judgment n.o.v., contending that it may not properly be held strictly liable for its failure to warn of the defective design of the Avco helicopter engine because "the issue of 'failure to warn' is addressed ... only when a product is designed and manufactured without defect, but nevertheless there are risks arising out of its use which require instructional warnings to make the use safe." Brief for Hughes at 20. At trial, Hughes requested that the jury be instructed that Hughes could only be found to be strictly liable for failure to warn or instruct if the Avco engine was not otherwise defective. We disagree with Hughes' construction of the strict products liability law of this Commonwealth. The trial court correctly concluded that Hughes, as the manufacturer of the helicopter, could be held strictly liable for the defective nature of the helicopter when it failed to warn of defects in the design of the helicopter's engine which were discovered and publicized after the sale of the aircraft. 7
"As between an innocent user of a product and a manufacturer or seller who is engaged in the business of manufacturing or selling a product, risk of loss for injuries resulting from the use of the product shall be borne by the manufacturer and/or seller." Majdic v. Cincinnati Machine Company, 370 Pa.Super. 611, 617, 537 A.2d 334, 337 (1988) (en banc ). The test for determining whether or not a product has reached the hands of the user or consumer in a "defective condition" is whether the product is "equipped with every element necessary to make it safe for use." Id. at 623, 537 A.2d at 340. It is by now settled that a product may be rendered defective because it lacks necessary warnings or instructions which the seller should have supplied but neglected to do so. In Berkebile v. Brantly Helicopter Corporation, 462 Pa. 83, 337 A.2d 893 (1975), the A "defective condition" is not limited to defects in design or manufacture. The seller must provide with the product every element necessary to make it safe for use. One such element may be warnings and/or instructions concerning use of the product. A seller must give such warnings and instructions as are required to inform the user or consumer of the possible risks and inherent limitations of his product. Restatement (Second) of Torts § 402A, comment h. If the product is defective absent such warnings, and the defect is a proximate cause of the plaintiff's injury, the seller is strictly liable without proof of negligence ... Where warnings or instructions are required to make a product non-defective, it is the duty of the manufacturer to provide such warnings in a form that will reach the ultimate consumer and inform of the risks and inherent limits of the product. The duty to provide a non-defective product is non-delegable....
Id. at 100-103, 337 A.2d at 902-903 (citations omitted). In Dambacher By Dambacher v. Mallis, 336 Pa.Super. 22, 485 A.2d 408 (1984), this Court stated that in an inadequate warnings case, which is based upon strict products liability, "... the jury ... is to consider whether the product was safe in the absence of warnings or in light of the warnings that were given." Id. at 57, 485 A.2d at 426.
In view of the evidence before the jury in the present case, we have no difficulty in concluding that the jury could, without legal error, impose strict liability upon Hughes. The fact that Avco was also found to be strictly liable because it designed, manufactured, and sold a defectively designed helicopter engine does not preclude a finding that Hughes was also strictly liable. It is quite clear that the jury found Hughes to be the supplier of a defective product because, apart from being in the chain of distribution of a defective component part, Hughes had sold its own product--a Hughes helicopter--without adequate warnings concerning its design and safety for consumer use. Hughes had been notified of the defect in the design of the Avco engine but, nevertheless, failed to issue warnings and service instructions to persons who had previously purchased a Hughes helicopter and were presumably flying it. In addition, Hughes failed to distribute Avco's Service Instruction 1341 to its authorized helicopter service centers. The idea that a product supplier can face strict liability for events which transpire subsequent to the sale of his product is not novel in this Commonwealth. In Majdic v....
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