Widow of Winnipeg man who died in float plane crash sues companies over negligence

The widow of a man who died on board a float plane that crashed into a northeastern Manitoba lake in 2019 is suing the carrier, the maintenance provider and the manufacturer, alleging they were negligent.

Devlin Stanley, a drywaller from Winnipeg, was on board a flight from Bissett to Little Grand Rapidsin October of that year when the planewent into a nose dive, hit Family Lake and was destroyed by the impact.

The crash killed Stanley, the pilot and another passenger.

The statement of claim, which was filed with Manitoba's Court of Queen's Bench on Aug. 26, alleges that the three companies Blue Water Aviation, Winnipeg River Aircraft and Viking Air failed to exercise reasonable care in the planning, design, manufacture, assembly, testing, inspection and servicing of the aircraft's components and systems, which caused the accident.

Morgan Moore-Bunney, Stanley's widow, is seeking damages to cover the loss of income, her husband's funeral and burial as well asthe costs of the legal action.

This lawsuit comes after a2021 report by the Transportation Safety Board which found that a fatigue fracture had developed in one of the upper right wing lift strut assemblies of the de Havilland DHC-3 Otter aircraft.

The suit names Viking Air,the owner of the aircraft type certificate; Blue Water Aviation, which chartered the flight; and Winnipeg River Aircraft, which was hired to provide aircraft maintenance over the years.

Viking Air is accused of failing to notify operators and users, including Blue Water Aviation and Stanley,that the aircraft had defective parts and failing to take precautions that could have prevented deaths.

The carrier is accused of not taking reasonable care to ensure the aircraft was properly maintained, repaired and inspected as well as failing to log a flight plan.

Finally, Winnipeg River Aircraft is accused of failing to warn Blue Water Aviation there were defective parts and not taking reasonable care to choose parts for the aircraft.

The suit alleges that for these reasons and others, thatall three companies failed in their duty of care to Stanley.

The statement of claim describes the 42-year-old as a healthy, hard-working and happy person who was the primary source of income for his wife and children.

Stanley's family is now "deprived of [his] guidance, care and companionship," the statement of claim says.

CBC News has made a number ofattemptsto contact Moore-Bunney and the companies named in the suit for comment, but none responded.

A statement of defence has not yet been filed as of Sunday.