10 killed in small plane shortly after takeoff at Addison Airport
ADDISON, Texas – Trial lawyer Chip Brooker of Dallas-based Brooker Law, PLLC, and aviation lawyer Dan Barks of Speiser Krause in Atlanta are reviewing the circumstances of yesterday’s deadly Texas airplane crash at Addison Airport that claimed the lives of eight passengers and two crew members.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is investigating the crash of the twin-engine Beechcraft Super King Air 350 that hit a hangar shortly after takeoff around 9 a.m. local time on Sunday. NTSB is expected to release a Preliminary Report within the next 10 days but the more detailed Factual and Final Reports likely will not be issued for well over a year.
This isn’t the first time a King Air has crashed immediately after takeoff,”
says Mr. Brooker, who has represented several clients in plane and helicopter crashes.
Weather does not appear to have been a factor, so investigators will primarily be looking at the crew’s actions and the plane’s performance. The left-sided roll may indicate an engine failure, equipment malfunction, or weight issues, but it’s too early to tell at this point.”
Mr. Brooker is an experienced trial lawyer who has represented clients in all modes of major transportation crashes from aviation to railroad to heavy trucks. Earlier this year, The National Law Journal and The National Trial Lawyers honored Mr. Brooker and several of his former colleagues as the 2018 Products Liability Trial Team of the Year based on a $242 million verdict against Toyota. In that case, Mr. Brooker helped represent a Dallas couple after their two young children suffered catastrophic brain injuries while riding in child seats in the back of a Lexus sedan.
According to news reports, the King Air at Addison Airport was scheduled to fly from Texas to St. Petersburg, Florida, when it veered sharply left and hit a private hangar before bursting into flames. Witnesses described the aircraft as appearing to lose power before its rapid descent into the side of the hangar, which was unoccupied at the time.
In my experience, crashes like the one that happened yesterday can be caused by a multitude of issues. It takes an experienced investigator and thorough investigation to find the true cause,” Mr. Barks says.
The NTSB reportedly has at least three videos of the crash and they’re looking for additional videos and any eyewitness accounts. We should have a clearer picture of what may have happened after the NTSB completes its preliminary investigations.”
Speiser Krause is one of the nation’s oldest aviation law firms with more than 65 years of experience focused on aviation litigation. A licensed pilot, Mr. Barks has served as lead counsel in over 50 major commercial and general aviation cases. He was lead counsel for the family of professional golfer Payne Stewart, who died in a 1999 plane crash in South Dakota on an ill-fated flight that was originally bound for Dallas.
Brooker Law, PLLC, represents individuals and families nationwide in wrongful death and catastrophic personal injury cases involving dangerous and defective products, trucking and transportation crashes, explosions and burns, on-the-job injuries, sexual assault, and professional negligence among other claims. The firm has experience handling cases involving traumatic brain injuries, amputations, burns, and paralysis, including paraplegia and quadriplegia. Brooker Law also represents individuals and businesses in complex business disputes involving claims of fraud, breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, tortious interference, and other business torts. Learn more at www.brookerlaw.com.
For more information, contact Bruce Vincent at 214-763-6226 or [email protected].