Lawsuits Claim Tesla Executive Negligent in Airplane Crash

Doug Bourn, the Tesla Motors executive who was killed last year when the airplane he was piloting struck high power wires in East Palo Alto, Calif., had not flown for 18 months before the day of the crash, according to two lawsuits filed against his estate by the families of the other men killed in the accident.

Sherina Yuk Chan, the widow of Brian Finn, and Paul and Barbara Ingram, the parents of Andrew Ingram, claim that Mr. Bourn was reckless and negligent. Federal regulations state that before flying with passengers, pilots are required to perform a certain number of takeoffs and landings. Whether Mr. Bourn complied with those requirements is part of the investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board.

All three men worked together at the Silicon Valley electric car company, and were believed to be on their way to a business meeting in Los Angeles.

The families of the two passengers did not sue Tesla. Mike Danko, an aviation lawyer and pilot unassociated with the case, said California law appears to prevent that. “You cannot sue an employer for a work-related injury or even a co-employee for a work related injury,” he said in a telephone interview.

The three men boarded Mr. Bourn’s six-seat Cessna 310 on Feb. 17 at Palo Alto Airport. The weather was foggy and visibility low, but Mr. Bourn had an instrument pilot rating and his airplane was equipped to fly in such conditions. Before takeoff, an air traffic controller warned the pilot that the runway was not visible to him from the tower, and cautioned that takeoff was “at your own risk,” according to a recording of the communication made by the Federal Aviation Administration.

“It is clear there was substantial pilot error involved in the crash and it is appropriate to name as a defendant the individual who piloted the airplane,” said Todd Emanuel, a Redwood City, Calif., lawyer who filed the complaint on behalf of Ms. Chan, when reached via telephone.

The lawsuits claim that after takeoff, Mr. Bourn was instructed to turn right within a mile of the runway, but he turned left and hit the power lines. Several homes on the ground were destroyed by fire and falling wreckage. Audio of the crash was captured on acoustic recorders installed near the airport.

Joshua Cawthra, an investigator for the National Transportation Safety Board, said via telephone that his examination of the crash was continuing and that he expected to complete his work by April.