Have you been injured in an aviation crash in Illinois? The aviation accident lawyers at Zayed Law Offices Personal Injury Attorneys offer reliable legal aid to passengers, pilots, and bystanders who are injured in aircraft crashes. We offer a free consultation with an aviation accident lawyer when you contact us at (312) 726-1616.
When most people think of aviation, commercial airlines come to mind. In reality, Illinois’s skies are far busier: a nearly continuous stream of drones, helicopters, and other non-commercial aircraft crisscrosses the Prairie State. Unfortunately, Illinois aviation crash statistics show that dozens of these flights encounter issues.
Why Choose Zayed Law Offices Personal Injury Attorneys for Help After an Aviation Crash in Illinois
An aviation accident in Illinois can have catastrophic consequences to passengers, crew members, and bystanders on the ground. For help, victims turn to Zayed Law Offices Personal Injury Attorneys.
Here’s why:
- Since the firm’s founding, our attorneys have recovered over $100 million in settlements and jury awards for our Illinois clients.
- We have decades of experience taking on liable parties and their insurers to protect the rights of those injured in aircraft mishaps.
- Aviation accidents can have catastrophic consequences for passengers, crew members, and bystanders on the ground, and our team understands how to address those complex harms.
- After an aviation accident caused by defective equipment or operator negligence, our attorneys discuss the incident with you and explain your options for seeking compensation.
Contact us to schedule a free consultation with an Illinois aviation accident attorney and learn more about your right to pursue damages after a crash.
Aviation Crash Defined
As defined by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), an aviation crash (often termed an “aircraft accident”) is a safety event tied to the operation of an aircraft in which one or more of the following occurs: a person is killed or seriously injured, and/or the aircraft sustains substantial damage.
The “operation” window generally runs from the moment passengers or crew board with the intent to fly until everyone has disembarked and the flight has ended. Notably, the NTSB’s jurisdiction only extends to civil aircraft. This includes all airplanes, helicopters, and drones for private use.
Illinois Aviation Crash Statistics
In Illinois in 2023, 28 aviation accidents occurred, with two being fatal. 2024 was a relatively low year for aviation crashes, with 14 accidents reported, 1 of which was fatal. In 2025, however, at least 30 accidents have been reported, with 4 of these resulting in fatalities.
The majority of Illinois aviation crashes tend to happen near Chicago.
Types of Illinois Aviation Crashes
Illinois hosts everything from busy urban corridors to rural strips, so crashes arise across a range of operations. Crashes generally fall into a few common categories:
- General aviation (light airplanes): Personal, recreational, and business flights, often involving takeoff/landing issues, weather, or decision-making errors.
- Charter/air taxi and commercial incidents: On-demand and scheduled operations facing schedule pressure, unfamiliar fields, and occasional runway or hard-landing events.
- Helicopters: Medical, news, and utility flights at low altitude with wire/obstacle and confined-area risks.
- Training flights: Student/instructor operations where stalls, pattern errors, or simulated emergencies can escalate.
- Special operations: Agricultural/utility work, experimental/homebuilt, ultralight, glider, and balloon flights with unique performance and maintenance considerations.
- Airport/ground and drone events: Runway incursions, taxi collisions, prop/rotor strikes, and unmanned aircraft injuries or conflicts.
Identifying the crash type quickly focuses the investigation on the right rules, records, and responsible parties.
What Causes Most Aviation Crashes in Illinois?
Understanding why aviation crashes happen helps pilots, operators, and passengers reduce risk. While each investigation is unique, Illinois accidents—especially in general aviation—tend to cluster around a core set of contributing factors.
Common causes of aviation accidents include:
- Pilot decision-making and human factors: Time pressure, fatigue, distraction, or checklist lapses that lead to poor go/no-go calls or unstable approaches.
- Loss of control in flight: Stalls, spins, or upsets that develop quickly during takeoff, pattern work, or approach after improper inputs.
- Adverse weather: Low ceilings, icing, wind shear, turbulence, and rapidly changing conditions that degrade performance and situational awareness.
- Mechanical and maintenance failures: Powerplant, control-system, or sensor problems that limit options, especially at low altitude.
- Fuel management errors: Inaccurate planning, failure to switch tanks, or contamination resulting in power loss or engine failure.
- Runway and taxi events: Hard landings, excursions, and crosswind misjudgments tied to speed control or braking/steering errors.
Understanding these causes helps pilots, operators, and passengers prioritize conservative weather decisions, recurrent training, rigorous maintenance, and disciplined checklist use to reduce crash risk.
Contact Our Illinois Accident Lawyers for a Free Consultation
Aviation accidents in Illinois are relatively rare. However, when they occur, they often result from either pilot error or defective equipment. If you’ve been injured, contact Zayed Law Offices Personal Injury Attorneys for a free, no-obligation consultation with an Illinois aviation accident lawyer to discuss your injuries and the compensation you may be entitled to seek for them.
