The Region - News from Aug. 29, 1986

The former wife and four surviving children of singer Ricky Nelson filed a wrongful death suit in Los Angeles Superior Court seeking unspecified damages against the companies that leased and maintained the DC-3 that caught fire and crash-landed Dec. 31 near DeKalb, Tex., killing Nelson, his fiancee and five band members. The suit accuses Century Equipment Co. and Duncan Aviation Inc. of poor maintenance and faulty installation of a heater in the back of the plane. Midland Ross Corp., manufacturer of the heater, is also a defendant in the suit filed by Nelson’s former wife, Kristin Nelson, and children Sam, Tracy, Gunnar and Matthew Nelson. The suit was the first to be filed by Nelson’s family.