Woman severely burned in deadly Long Island plane crash files lawsuit

A woman who was severely burned in a deadly plane crash on Long Island in 2023 has filed a lawsuit, claiming the crash was preventable.

The single-engine Piper crashed during a 40-minute flight in Lindenhurst on March 5, 2023. Three people were on board at the time:  the woman, her mother and the pilot.

The Federal Aviation Administration says a short time after taking off from Republic Airport, the pilot issued a mayday signal, reporting smoke in the cockpit. He tried to make an emergency landing less than 3 miles away from the airport, but crashed.

The woman's 63-year-old mother was killed, and the 23-year-old pilot was critically injured and later died.

The lawsuit accuses Republic Aviation and Waizman Aviation of ignoring prior incidents of smoke in the cockpit in the weeks leading up to the fatal crash.

Back in 2023, federal investigators said the pilot had reported smoke in the cockpit two months prior to the crash, but the aircraft was returned to service after troubleshooting and testing. The National Transportation Safety Board also said the aircraft had been inspected just six days before the crash.

The defendants have not commented on the lawsuit.