Family Members of Addison Plane Crash Victims File Lawsuit Against Aircraft Operators
The family members of two people killed in an Addison plane crash accused the aircraft’s operators of causing the crash in a wrongful death lawsuit filed on Feb. 5.
Ornella Ellard and Matthew Palmer were among the 10 people killed in the June crash.
Ellard’s father, Lorenzo Cosentino, and Palmer’s wife and parents filed the suit against the plane’s operators, EE Operations LLC, EE Realty, Inc. and S&H Aircraft LLC, in Dallas County court.
On June 30, the 2019 Beech King Air 350 struggled to gain altitude after taking off from the Addison airport. Seconds after take-off, the plane veered to one side and plunged into the hangar, local authorities and witnesses said. The cause behind the airplane’s crash is still under investigation.
The lawsuit does not describe the plaintiffs’ specific allegations against the aircraft operators, saying only that they were “negligent in their operation of the aircraft on the fatal flight and their negligence caused the crash.”
The victims’ families are requesting a jury trial.
An audio recording from onboard the plane revealed confusion among the pilots and signs of engine trouble in the moments leading up to the accident. Twelve seconds before the plane crashed, “crew comment consistent with confusion” was recorded, according to the National Transportation Safety Board.
Crew comment regarding a problem with the left engine was captured about eight seconds before the end of the recording.
Palmer, 28, lived in Fort Worth. He was the co-pilot onboard the airplane, which was heading to St. Petersburg, Florida.
According to Palmer’s wife’s Facebook, the two had just celebrated their one-year wedding anniversary. Palmer was a ranch and arena hand at the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo.
Ornella Ellard’s husband, Brian Ellard, 52, and her children, Alice Maritato, 15, and Dylan Maritato, 13, also were killed in the crash.
Ornella Ellard, 45, was an interior designer.
Brian Ellard had connections with EE Operations LLC, which owned the aircraft, according to business records.
EE Operations has an address in the 4900 block of Keller Springs Road, which is blocks away from the airport. The same address is also registered to Ellard Family Holdings LLC, which Brian Ellard owned.
EE Operations’ address is also registered to NTA Life Management Inc., of which Brian Ellard was the president and chief executive officer, according to public records and Ellard’s LinkedIn Account.
Staff reporter Gordon Dickson contributed to this story.
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