Sioux City, Iowa — An Inwood farmer and the helicopter pilot and the helicopter company that he sued for negligence after he was injured in a helicopter accident in 2017 have settled out of court.
According to the report from the National Transportation Safety Board, those in the helicopter, which was owned by Ride The Sky Helicopters of Sioux Falls, were looking for 300 lost cattle just southwest of the West Lyon School, about two and a half years ago on November 6th, 2017. Lyon County Sheriff Stewart Vander Stoep says that the pilot was Robert Krier of Sioux Falls, and the passenger was Steve Ahrendt of rural Inwood, who was the owner of the cattle. The victims were taken to Sioux Falls hospitals with serious, but non-life threatening injuries. Witnesses said that the helicopter was hovering and as it started to turn, the tail of the helicopter struck the power lines.
The NTSB’s report said the pilot had lost situational awareness, causing him to fail to maintain the necessary distance from the power lines.
The suit was originally filed in Lyon County District Court in October 2019 by Ahrendt and his wife Lori. It was later transferred to U.S. District Court in Sioux City. Terms of the settlement were not disclosed.
