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 negligence against the flight instructor's estate, Eagle Flight Academy, and ATP Flight Center, claiming the flight was "unnecessary" and "avoidable."
Both Quisenberry and instructor Timothy McKellar Jr. were killed when their plane was ripped apart in a thunderstorm during a night flight, which McKellar documented on Snapchat, posting derogatory remarks about Quisenberry and noting the approaching hazardous weather.
The lawsuit highlights that McKellar had been discharged from ATP Flight Center due to "unsatisfactory performance" as an instructor, and alleges that both flight schools were aware of his deficiencies but failed to take adequate remedial action.

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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.