Family Sues After Student Pilot Killed in Kentucky Crash

The wrongful death suit claims the cross-country night flight during a thunderstorm was unnecessary and avoidable.

Thursday, September 19, 2024 at 05:31 PM ET

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According to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) preliminary accident report, the aircraft flew through "heavy to extreme precipitation." [Courtesy: NTSB]

Key Takeaways:

The parents of flight student Connor Quisenberry, who died in a September 2023 plane crash, have filed a lawsuit alleging the fatal flight was unnecessary, avoidable, and due to negligence by his flight instructor, Timothy McKellar Jr.
The lawsuit names Eagle Flight Academy and ATP Flight Center, claiming they knew about McKellar's deficiencies as an instructor, as he had been discharged from ATP for unsatisfactory performance.
McKellar, who also died in the crash, posted derogatory comments and videos about Quisenberry on Snapchat during the ill-fated night flight, which occurred in a thunderstorm and resulted in the aircraft being torn apart.
The NTSB's preliminary report indicated the aircraft flew through "heavy to extreme precipitation" and experienced "extreme turbulence" before contact was lost, and the investigation is ongoing.

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The parents of Connor Quisenberry, the flight student killed last September in an airplane crash in Kentucky, have filed a lawsuit alleging the flight was “unnecessary,” and that the crash was “avoidable” and the result of negligence on the part of his flight instructor.

Both Quisenberry and flight instructor Timothy McKellar Jr., 22, were killed when their Piper PA-28-161 was ripped apart in a thunderstorm during a night flight.

Meg Godlewski

Meg Godlewski has been an aviation journalist for more than 24 years and a CFI for more than 20 years. If she is not flying or teaching aviation, she is writing about it. Meg is a founding member of the Pilot Proficiency Center at EAA AirVenture and excels at the application of simulation technology to flatten the learning curve. Follow Meg on Twitter @2Lewski.