Yankees pitcher Cory Lidle who died when the plane he was piloting crashed into a building on the Upper East Side in 2006 had nothing to do with pilot error but because the flight controls “were jammed,” according to a lawyer who represents the family in a wrong-death lawsuit.
Although the FAA concluded that the crash was pilot error and that Lidle who was flying with his instructor misjudged a turn, lawyer Todd Macaluso argued it was due to a design flaw after the jet was rushed into production.
“The plane could have made the turn, but the flight controls were jammed,” he said during opening arguments in Manhattan Federal Court.
Macaluso claims the plane’s manufacturer Cirrus Design Corp. was at fault for Lidle’s death on Oct. 11, 2006, when his plane crashed into a building on East 72nd Street, also killing flight instructor Tyler Stanger.
Lidle’s widow, Melanie Lidle, has sued Cirrus Design Corp. for $50 million. The company has denied all wrongdoing.
In a Manhattan courtroom this morning, Macaluso, who is the lawyer for the plaintiff, used satellite images and animation to show Lidle’s final 45 seconds of life.
Macaluso told the jury that the plane was spinning out of control and slammed into the building upside down.
“With an instructor on board, they could have easily navigated this,” he said.
Macaluso said Lidle even bent the controls in his frantic effort to make the turn.
“This plane lost control before it even made the turn,” he said.
Macaluso said the plane “was all over the place” and that the parachutes also malfunctioned. He said it would have made little difference since the plane was about 1,000 feet from the ground.
“If you can’t control the airplane, you can’t be at fault,” he said.