Family of Oregon Girl Who Died in 2014 Plane Crash Sues Manufacturer

The family of a 4-year-old girl who died when the homebuilt airplane she was riding in crashed in Toledo is suing the plane’s manufacturer.

The Oregonian reported the suit against Van’s Aircraft of Aurora seeks $35 million in damages in Zoey Wahl’s death and for injuries to the girl’s mother, April Gleason.

The two had been traveling from Newport to the girl’s home in Seattle in May 2014 when the plane crashed in the Georgia-Pacific paper mill parking lot. The girl’s step-grandfather, 51-year-old Douglas Nebert, also died in the crash. He had been piloting the plane.

The suit claims that homebuilt airplanes pose a danger to riders because they aren’t held to the same safety standards as other professionally built planes.

Van’s Aircraft declined comment, citing the pending litigation.