The problem with split rim truck wheels was that when they failed, usually
innocent pedestrians or motorists were the ones killed. Had the wheel makers
Murphy-proofed their products or made them universally interchangeable, and if
truck tire personnel were required to be a grade above the epsilon minuses
usually in that position, the problem would not have existed. But it did,
because that's the customer base they sold to. The courts made the manufacture
of split rim wheels economically untenable and one piece wheels became the
standard. Of course, since there is no way for the five to ten people every
year who would have been killed if the use of split rims continued to be
identified, the courts and trial lawyers can't claim credit very easily.

Wichita made an airplane-in the case of the heavy singles and light twins that
racked up most of the judgments and settlements-that the customer base-people
with money and usually dismally trained-were not capable of handling. It had
characteristics that were suitable for day VFR use but which made IFR and
night VFR operations by minimally trained owners, most of whom did not fly
enough hours to remain current, a marginal proposition.

Research in the 1960s proved single pilot IFR operations required a major
workload reduction from the WWII-era instrumented and configured aircraft.
Single lever power control, the drum-pointer altimeter, an alternate attitude
and heading indicator (no 'needle ball and alcohol': that's for black and white
war movies) and avionics easily operable without looking down on approach were
indicated. The military in fact revised both the cockpit layout and its
approach procedures after spates of Sabre and T-33 crashes in the 1950s.

Wichita ignored all this. Its only response when we started suing them was to
'shoot, shovel,and shut up' and buy more liability insurance coverage.

Looking back, although it made my family a lot of money, product liability
insurance is like heroin. It doesn't fix the problem, it just numbs the user to
it. Outlawing liability insurance might be a good idea, even though it would
make me change careers.

Harley-Davidson motorcycles are more dangerous than any airplane, and they are
still made in America by a profitable company that is the antithesis of
judgment-proof. With the exception of the federal statute of limitations , the
liability laws are the same for H-D as Cessna, Piper, and Beech.

The real reason recip-engine singles are no longer produced is not product
liability, in any case. It's the great profitability of corporate jet
manufacture, which uses the same floor space and workforce to make a product
with unequalled profit margins once the certification and tooling costs are
paid for. The high cost of type certification and widespread abuse of
Experimental/Amateur-Built provisions are what deters interest in new personal
aircraft startups.