We have reported in the past about the dangers and risks associated with air travel. So many variables are at play when traveling in an air craft including the pilot’s competency and abilities, weather patterns and airplane mechanics. From a personal injury standpoint, injured parties and surviving families often have multiple causes of action against not only the pilot but the plane manufacturer and any other party contributing parts to the plane.
A veteran Anaheim police officer, who joined the force as a teenager in the Explorer program, was tragically killed over the weekend when his small plane crashed off an air strip in Arizona. The officer was flying home with his girlfriend, who was also killed, when the plane crash landed upside down at the end of the runway.
The cause of the incident is still being investigated but onlookers described the plane as “rocking back and forth” on takeoff. The plane then hit the ground, rolled and came a rest on its roof.
The victim had been a full-time police officer since 1999. He worked his way up from the high school program and served as a traffic controller, patrol officer and a detective. He recently returned to patrol duties due to a skill and affinity for electronics. He often helped with special projects requiring heightened computer and electronic knowledge.
He victim was a licensed private pilot since 2003. The female victim was also a police officer in the Simi Valley Police Department.
