Previous Settlements Allow Families To Sue As Well

Auto racing giant NASCAR and an affiliated company have filed a lawsuit against Cessna, charging that a Cessna 310 owned by NASCAR crashed entirely due to the manufacturer's negligence, and that the plane Cessna's instructions, warnings, inspections and repairs for the aircraft were inadequate.

The Daytona Beach News-Journal reviewed court documents in the suit, filed in connection with the crash on July 10, 2007. As ANN reported, NASCAR Aviation Captain Michael Klemm and Dr. Bill Kennedy, also a pilot and the husband of NASCAR official Lesa France Kennedy, took off from Daytona Beach for Lakeland, FL. Ten minutes later, they reported smoke in the cockpit, and announced their intent to land at Orlando-Sanford International Airport.

The NTSB determined the two men were probably overcome by toxic fumes. The board reports the last radio transmission was cut off in mid-sentence, and included the phrase "shut off all radios." The plane suddenly banked right, struck a tree, and crashed into two houses at The Preserve at Lake Monroe subdivision in Sanford. Klemm and Kennedy died, as did an adult and two children on the ground.

NASCAR has already said it believes the accident was caused by an electrical fault in the aircraft wiring. The amount sought in the lawsuit was not specified, but it appears NASCAR and its insurer are trying to recover settlements already paid to the families of victims, including at least a million dollars paid to Klemm's family.

The terms of the settlements paid by NASCAR specifically left the door open for the families to sue Cessna and various parts manufacturers.

Cessna says it will have no comment on pending litigation, and declined to say whether it faces any other lawsuits in connection with the crash. Cessna calls the 310's safety record "excellent." The News-Journal reports the AOPA Air Safety Foundation accident database lists the type in 461 accidents since 1983, of which 137 involved at least one fatality.

The suit will make an interesting study in case law, and not just because the airplane was 30 years old. NASCAR is attempting to pin 100 percent of the blame on Cessna, but at least one witness told the NTSB the accident aircraft had suffered a failed weather radar system the previous day, accompanied by a burning smell in the cockpit, but Klemm, NASCAR's pilot, said he wasn't concerned and chose to fly the plane regardless.

There's no word yet on when the suit might come to trial if not settled.

FMI: www.nascar.com, www.cessna.com