The San Antonio International Airport said an airline ground crew member died in an accident. The fatal accident occurred on the ground, the airport said.
Michael Braun
Editor's note: This article contains graphic depictions not suitable for all ages.
MySA
By Katy Barber
A passenger on a plane at the San Antonio International Airport is suing after she claims she witnessed the tragic and graphic suicide of a ground crew worker that was reportedly "ingested" into the engine of the aircraft in June. The flight was arriving in San Antonio from Los Angeles and taxiing on the runway when the reported suicide took
place.
The lawsuit was filed on Wednesday, August 2, in a Bexar County district court and names the estate of the ground crew worker that died on June 23, identified as David Renner, and Unifi Aviation, which provides ground services at SAT, as defendants in the case. The passenger alleges she is suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and claims the company that employed Renner committed gross negligence in his hiring.
Court documents say the Comal County woman was sitting in the window seat directly above the captain's side engine when she witnessed as "the turbine essentially 'shredded' [Renner's] body," and that she has "nightmares and flashbacks of seeing bits of the body being 'spit out' as the jet engine pulverized the rest of the human remains." She is seeking emotional damages over $1 million.
The Bexar County Medical Examiner's Office ruled his death a suicide and the San Antonio-Express news reports Renner tried handing his supervisor a suicide note before the incident. The lawsuit alleges that Unifi Aviation, the company that employed Renner at SAT, should have been aware of Renner's "visible" mental health struggles before he committed suicide, citing public social media posts, statements by other crew, and statements by his family members.
Renner's brother Joshua told the UK Daily Mail in June that he had been clean for at least five months prior to his suicide, was in therapy, and taking prescribed medications. He also said his brother had struggled with mental health issues in the past and the incident was not "the first time David has tried something like this."
Renner's last known address was Haven for Hope and social media posts included in the filing documents reference previous substance abuse issues, sobriety, and suicidal ideations.
The lawsuit alleges Renner should not have been hired by Unifi Aviation, claims he should have been suspended on account of his public mental health crisis, and asserts the company has forgone its advertised "culture of safety" in favor of "low-cost, improperly vetted labor on the ground."