SANTA PAULA : Parents Sue Over Plane Crash Death
The parents of a student pilot who was killed in a midair crash in Santa Paula in February filed a lawsuit Thursday against actor Kirk Douglas, cartoon voice creator Noel Blanc, three other men and several public agencies.
The wrongful-death lawsuit filed in Ventura County Superior Court is the latest of several legal actions filed since the Feb. 13 crash, in which a Bell Jet Ranger helicopter piloted by Blanc flew over the airport runway and collided with a small plane. Two people on the plane--flight instructor Lee Manelski, 46, of Santa Paula and David S. Tomlinson, 18, of Thousand Oaks--were killed, while Blanc and Douglas suffered serious injuries.
In the suit, A. Scott Tomlinson and Harriet Tomlinson allege that Blanc, Douglas and Manelski, among others, operated both aircraft in violation of federal and local rules and customs.
Another factor in the crash, the suit says, was an airport design that placed the runway and the helicopter landing pad in “dangerously close proximity.” The suit names the city of Santa Paula, the Santa Paula Airport Assn., the California Aeronautics Board and the state Department of Aeronautics.
Blanc’s attorney declined to comment, saying he had not seen the suit. The other defendants could not be reached for comment.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
