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Passengers pulled from fiery wreckage suing airline

Jan. 22, 2013, Vancouver - Six of seven passengers pulled from the fiery wreckage of a commuter plane that crashed in Richmond, B.C., are suing the airline for negligence.


January 22, 2013  By The Canadian Press

Documents filed in B.C. Supreme Court reveal the six passengers are seeking compensation for injuries suffered in October 2011, when the Northern Thunderbird aircraft burst into flames after slamming into a road just metres from the runway.

The King Air 100 had departed for Kelowna just minutes earlier despite what the lawsuit claims were warnings from passengers to the flight crew about oil underneath aircraft's wing.

The plaintiffs say after takeoff the captain announced the plane would be returning to Vancouver's airport because of an oil issue but the aircraft never made it there.

The two pilots, Luc Fortin and Matt Robic, were rescued but later died of their injuries.

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Good Samaritans from nearby offices and passing cars helped save the lives of the passengers by pulling them from the burning plane.

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