This case has some tragi-comedy to it. A fatal plane crash into a federal
reserve building. Now the feds are suing the planes' owners.

Federal Reserve sues aircraft company over 2002 crash

MIAMI — The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta is suing a Florida aircraft
company for damages at its Miami branch office when a small plane crashed
there in December 2002, killing the pilot and a passenger.

The lawsuit was filed earlier this week in federal court against Four
Winds Aircraft LLC of New Smyrna Beach. The lawsuit does not specify
damages but the crash cost the bank $136,000 in damage and recovery
expenses, Federal Reserve spokeswoman Jean Tate said Thursday.

Pilot Rick Grannis, 25, and 57-year-old Garry Williams both died when
their prototype Four Winds 192 crashed into the northeast side of the bank
building on Dec. 5, 2002. They had been returning from the Florida Keys,
where they had shown the prototype to a local flying club.

According to the lawsuit, the crash happened after a fire broke out on the
plane, allegedly caused by the faulty design of a power seat adapted from
an automobile use.

"The defective condition rendered the subject aircraft unreasonably
dangerous to members of the public and to property owners," the lawsuit
said.

The Miami Federal Reserve building, a part of the Federal Reserve Bank of
Atlanta, is located west of Miami International Airport along commonly
used flight paths and across the street from the Doral Golf Resort & Spa.
It houses a number of other offices, including the Miami bureau of The
Associated Press.

Jeff Rahm, vice president of sales and marketing at Four Winds, said he
was "dumbfounded" that the bank had filed the lawsuit but declined further
comment because he had not seen it. The case was assigned to U.S. District
Judge Federico Moreno of Miami