Portland
AI Assisted Icon
Published on January 19, 2025
Family of Student Pilot Killed in Newberg Crash Seeks $27 Million, Suing Hillsboro Aero Academy and Alaska AirlinesSource: Unsplash / Max Fleischmann

The family of a student pilot who perished in a plane crash near Newberg in 2023 is seeking $27 million in a wrongful death lawsuit. The crash, which claimed the life of 20-year-old Barrett Bevacqua, occurred during a flying lesson with a Hillsboro Aero Academy instructor, 22-year-old Michele Cavallotti, who also died, leaving another student pilot seriously injured. The lawsuit targets flight schools Hillsboro Aero Academy, Ascend Pilot Academy, as well as Alaska Airlines, which operates Ascend as part of a pilot recruitment program. According to a report by KGW, Barrett Bevacqua was enrolled in the Ascend Pilot Academy at the time of the accident.

On that fateful day, KATU reports that the aircraft began to free-fall from over 5,000 feet at a rate surpassing 8,000 feet per minute, leaving those on board aware of their impending doom. The family's lawsuit alleges that Cavallotti may have been attempting a maneuver called a single-engine minimum controllable airspeed demonstration when the plane spun out of control. Based on flight track data, wreckage, witness statements, and other information from the National Transportation Safety Board's preliminary report, the lawsuit argues that Cavallotti failed to maintain control after allowing the aircraft to slow below safe speed thresholds, according to KGW.

Matt Bevacqua, Barrett's father, conveyed to KGW in an interview his son's passion, saying "One hundred percent, he went out doing what he loved." Despite the pending litigation, Alaska Airlines extended their "deepest condolences to his family and friends," in a statement while refraining from commenting further on the active legal process.

Allegations in the lawsuit suggest that Cavallotti, who was at the controls, may have induced a stall that eventually led to the tragic crash. This claim is part of a wider accusation that both the pilot schools and Alaska Airlines hold responsibility due to their employment of an inexperienced flight instructor. In reporting by KOIN, the suit seeks to prove negligence on the part of these organizations, striving for a substantial compensation to the grieving family. While the legal battles are set to unfold in the wake of this tragedy, the focus for many remains upon the memories of a young dreamer's last flight and the stark realities of an unforgiving sky.