Bombardier named in musician Travis Barker's Learjet lawsuit

The wreckage of a Learjet that was carrying former Blink 182 drummer Travis Barker and Adam Goldstein, also known as DJ AM, rests on an embankment near the Columbia Metropolitan Airport in Columbia, S.C., in September. (Brett Flashnick/Associated Press)

Musician Travis Barker is suing companies linked to a plane crash in South Carolina that killed four people and injured him and fellow performer DJ AM.

The former Blink 182 drummer is suing the plane's owners, Global Exec Aviation, as well as Montreal-based Bombardier Inc. and Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. for more than $25,000 US in damages.

Two charter firms that brokered the flight, Clay Lacy Aviation Inc. and Inter Travel and Services Inc., are also named in the suit.

Barker and DJ AM, whose real name is Adam Goldstein, survived the Learjet crash on Sept. 19 in South Carolina. The two had just performed at an event in the area.

The pilot and co-pilot, as well as Barker's assistant Chris Baker and security guard Charles Still, died.

Barker is seeking damages for pain and suffering, disfigurement, loss of earnings and medical and legal expenses. Still's mother, Thelma Martin Still, joined the 32-year-old drummer in the lawsuit and is suing for grief, funeral expenses and loss of earnings.

The lawsuit alleges that the Learjet was "defective" and says the pilots were improperly trained and should have tried to take off rather than continue down the runway.

The plane skidded off the runway, crashed through a fence and crossed a five-lane highway. It came to rest on an embankment where it was engulfed in flames.

Goodyear made the aircraft's tires and Bombardier provided maintenance for the plane.

An investigation by the U.S. National Transportation and Safety Board is ongoing.

Barker was released from a Los Angeles burn centre in mid-October after undergoing several skin grafts and multiple operations.

Goldstein was released from hospital on Sept. 26 and was well enough to perform at an event the following day.

With files from the Associated Press