Butte, MontanaButte Aviation Accident
Butte Aviation Accident Lawyers: Bert Mooney Airport, Small Plane and Mountain Crashes in Southwest Montana
Boland Aarab PLLP.
After a plane or helicopter crash near Butte, the NTSB investigates, but it does not represent injured people or families. A damages case may be filed in the Second Judicial District Court in Butte or in the federal Butte Division. Montana allows three years for most claims, and claims against the United States have a two-year presentment rule.
Hurt in an aircraft accident near Butte, or lost someone in a crash? Contact Boland Aarab PLLP for a free consultation at (406) 315-3737.
What aviation activity is there around Butte?
Bert Mooney Airport (BTM) sits about three miles southeast of Butte and is run by the Bert Mooney Airport Authority. It has two paved runways, the longer about 9,000 feet, and scheduled service to Salt Lake City (Delta Connection) and Denver (United Express). Most of its traffic, though, is general aviation: private planes, plus air-taxi and charter flights and some military operations.
That means the typical Butte aviation case involves a small plane, a charter or air-taxi flight, an air ambulance, or a helicopter, often flying in mountain terrain.
What makes flying around Butte risky?
Three local conditions come up again and again in aviation cases here.
- High elevation. The airport sits at about 5,550 feet. Thin air reduces engine power, propeller efficiency and lift, especially on warm summer afternoons. Takeoff and climb performance that is fine at sea level can be marginal at Butte.
- Mountain terrain. Butte sits in a basin ringed by the Continental Divide. Approaches and departures pass near high ground, and mountain winds can produce turbulence and downdrafts.
- Cold. Winter temperatures well below freezing affect fuel, ice and aircraft systems. The National Transportation Safety Board’s investigation of the March 22, 2009 crash of a Pilatus PC-12 that was diverting to Bert Mooney, which killed all 14 people aboard, found that ice in the fuel system restricted fuel flow from one tank and led to a fuel imbalance and loss of control. The NTSB found that a fuel-system icing inhibitor, required below freezing, had not been added (NTSB/AAR-11/05).
Those conditions do not make a crash anyone’s fault by themselves. They set the standard: pilots, operators, maintenance shops and manufacturers are expected to plan for them.
What happens after an aviation accident in Butte?
The investigation. The NTSB leads the investigation of civil aircraft accidents as a fact-finding process with no adverse parties (49 C.F.R. § 831.4). The operator, the manufacturer and the FAA may participate as parties; injured people and families do not. The aircraft wreckage is usually held and examined under NTSB control, and then released. We work to make sure it is preserved, and that our own experts can examine it, before anything is discarded.
First responders and care. Local response comes from the Butte-Silver Bow Law Enforcement Department and emergency services. Injured survivors are generally taken to St. James Healthcare, an ACS Level III / State Area Trauma Hospital (DPHHS, Nov. 2025), and some are transferred to larger centers.
Which court? A case filed in state court in Butte goes to the Second Judicial District Court, Silver Bow County (§ 3-5-101(2), MCA), at 155 West Granite Street. Aviation defendants such as manufacturers and out-of-state operators are frequently in federal court, and a claim against the United States, for example over air traffic control, must be in federal court. For Butte, that is the U.S. District Court, Butte Division, at the Mike Mansfield Federal Courthouse, 400 North Main Street (mtd.uscourts.gov). A crash in the mountains outside Silver Bow County may belong in another county’s court.
Montana law that applies
The core rules, briefly. Our Montana aviation accident lawyer page explains each in detail.
- No part of an NTSB Board accident report may be admitted or used in a civil damages case (49 U.S.C. § 1154(b)). Factual reports are treated differently (49 C.F.R. § 835.2).
- The General Aviation Revitalization Act generally bars suits against general aviation manufacturers 18 years after delivery, with important exceptions.
- Montana gives 3 years for most injury and wrongful-death claims (§ 27-2-204, MCA); claims against the United States require a written claim within 2 years (28 U.S.C. § 2401(b)).
- Fault is apportioned among everyone responsible: the pilot, the operator, maintenance providers, manufacturers and, in some cases, the government (§ 27-1-702, MCA).
Why hire a Great Falls firm for a Butte case?
Aviation cases are built on records, wreckage and experts, and they often end up in federal court. We are based in Great Falls, handle cases statewide, and have substantial federal court experience. Our attorneys travel to Butte, or to the crash site, to meet families, examine evidence with experts and handle depositions, hearings and trial.
Honestly stated: we do not have a Butte office, and our jury trials have been in Cascade, Phillips, Meagher and Yellowstone Counties, not Silver Bow.
The Boland Aarab Way
- Federal court experience: more than 40 cases in the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana over nine years.
- Ninth Circuit experience: Samir Aarab has argued twice before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
- Trial time: more than 4,000 hours in the courtroom.
- Families work directly with the attorneys, Caitlin Boland Aarab and Samir Aarab.
We also handle wrongful death cases in Butte and burn injury cases in Butte. See our Butte personal injury page.
Contact Boland Aarab PLLP for a free consultation at (406) 315-3737.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who investigates a plane crash near Bert Mooney Airport? The NTSB leads the investigation, with the FAA and, often, the manufacturer and operator participating. Local law enforcement and emergency services respond to the scene.
Can I use the NTSB’s conclusions in my Butte lawsuit? Not the Board’s accident report itself, which federal law bars from civil damages cases. Factual information and our own experts’ analysis of the wreckage and records are used instead.
Does Butte’s elevation matter in a crash case? Often. High elevation, mountain winds and cold affect aircraft performance and systems, and pilots and operators are expected to plan for them.
What if an air ambulance flight to or from Butte crashed? Air ambulance operators can be responsible like any other operator. These cases may involve federal rules and out-of-state companies, which often means federal court.
How long do we have to act? Generally three years under Montana law, but two years to present a claim against the United States. Evidence should be preserved immediately.
Our attorneys: Caitlin Boland Aarab · Samir F. Aarab
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.
