CHARLOTTE (QUEEN CITY NEWS) -- The wife of a Charlotte media company employee who died in a helicopter crash two years ago has filed a wrongful death lawsuit. Kerry Tayag, the wife of Christopher “Chip” Tayag, is suing Robinson Helicopter Company Inc., claiming the manufacturer failed to address known failures with faulty parts. Robinson manufactures, designs and sells helicopters, including models R22, R44, and R66. The company also tests, inspects, and distributes helicopters and their components. Friday's lawsuit alleges Robinson's failure to address known issues that led to the "catastrophic failure and crash" of the WBTV News R44 helicopter, N7094J, on Nov. 22, 2022 -- exactly two years prior to the filing. Tayag was piloting the R44 helicopter with WBTV Meteorologist Jason Meyers when the aircraft went down off Interstate 77 in Charlotte. Both men lost their lives in the accident. Photos: Meteorologist Jason Myers and Pilot Chip Tayag According to the lawsuit, following the deadly crash, an examination of the helicopter’s flight controls revealed that the left control rod end was disconnected. The failure of the connecting hardware and critical fasteners, including the nuts, caused the Robinson R44 helicopter to become uncontrollable, and caused the crash, the lawsuit states. CNN calls Robinson lawsuit ‘political theatre,’ ‘untethered from actual facts,’ ‘ridiculous’ in motion for federal court to dismiss case The lawsuit claims since 2003, Robinson has been aware that its critical fasteners were subject to "hydrogen embrittlement," which can cause metals to undergo corrosion and crack. This reportedly can cause the critical fastener to detach and render the aircraft uncontrollable. By at least 2011, the lawsuit states Robinson became aware that the locking nuts used on its helicopters were prone to cracking due likely, in part, to "hydrogen embrittlement." In August 2011, Robinson issued a series of service letters due to reports of cracked self-locking nuts. The lawsuit states that several service letters issued by Robinson: "Did not mandate action on the part of an owner, operator, mechanic, or pilot." "Did not address the criticality of failure of the self-locking nuts." "Did not state what nuts should replace the cracked or corroded nuts." In October 2014 and 2018, Robinson reportedly amended the R22 Maintenance Manual to instruct that MS21042L-series nuts be replaced with D210-series nuts. The lawsuit claims that the R44 Maintenance Manual was not updated to add this instruction or warning until 2021. On information and belief, the R44 Maintenance Manual was not amended to include the warning that D210-series nuts supersede MS21042L-series nuts and were required on critical fasteners until September 2023 in Section 23-30. At all times relevant, including 2019 to present day, the R44 Illustrated Parts Catalog has never been modified to incorporate the D210 series nuts, and instead still utilizes the MS21042L-series nuts. When the subject aircraft, Robinson R44 helicopter N7094J, completed overhaul on Aug. 15, 2019, the R44 Illustrated Parts Catalog utilized the MS21042L-series nuts. Lawsuit Documents - Kerry Tayag v. Robinson Helicopter Company The lawsuit alleges Robinson was negligent in several ways including supplying knowingly unsafe critical components for use in its R44 helicopters, failing for more than 10 years to revise the R44 Maintenance Manual, and failing to provide an adequate maintenance manual. Full lawsuit attached below: Kerry Tayag v. Robinson Helicopter Company Download This is not the first lawsuit filed in connection to the deadly crash. In March 2023, Meyers' family sued the maintenance facility and the companies that owned and operated the aircraft. This suit targeted Wilson Air Center-North Carolina, the Total Traffic and Weather Network, and iHeartMedia. Meyers worked for WBTV and Tayag worked for the Total Traffic and Weather Network, which is owned by parent company iHeartMedia, the lawsuit stated. Tayag's widow is now seeking $75,000 in the wrongful death lawsuit, claiming Tayag suffered "preimpact fright and suffering" and the family has suffered loss of earnings from Tayag, loss of prospective net accumulations from the date of Tayag’s death, and past funeral expenses.