FlightSafety International is suing an engine repair and overhaul shop that it claims was responsible for the October crash of a Beechcraft King Air into its Wichita Cessna Citation training center, which killed four people including the pilot.
The lawsuit, filed in Dallas County District Court, alleges that MRO firm Dallas Airmotive improperly repaired the King Air's PT6A-42 engines 10 days before the crash.
"Dallas Airmotive returned the engines and their subcomponents to service, representing that they were airworthy when they were not," the lawsuit states. "This crash and plaintiff's damages were proximately caused by the above negligence."
About a minute after taking off from Wichita Mid-Continent Airport last October 30, the pilot radioed the tower that he was declaring an emergency and had lost his left engine. The twin turboprop subsequently crashed into the roof of the FlightSafety building, killing three people inside a flight simulator and injuring five others.
The National Transportation Safety Board has yet to issue a probable cause of the crash. FlightSafety is seeking millions in damages.
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