Judge dismisses suit vs. Delta Air Lines after fuel dump in Pico Rivera

PICO RIVERA — A judge has dismissed one of multiple lawsuits filed against Delta Air Lines over the alleged dumping of fuel by one of its airliners over areas of southeast Los Angeles County in 2020, in this case by a man who said he was doused in Pico Rivera.

On Monday, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael E. Whitaker tossed Gerald Castaneda's case after neither the plaintiff nor a representative appeared for a scheduled trial of the case. Whitaker also found the lawsuit was never served on the airline.

The judge's dismissal ruling was "without prejudice," meaning Castaneda is not barred from refiling the suit, which was originally brought in December 2021 and alleged negligence, personal injury and property damage.

A Delta representative previously said that the pilots were forced to dump fuel over an urban area to reduce the plane's weight before the return landing.

The Delta Boeing 777 jet was en route to Shanghai on Jan. 14, 2020, but soon after takeoff from Los Angeles International Airport for the 13-hour flight, the pilots of Flight 89 declared an emergency and shut down one of the jumbo jet's two engines because of a compressor stall.

Minutes later, the plane dumped roughly 15,000 gallons of fuel at an altitude of about 2,000 feet over a wide area that also included such cities as South Gate and Cudahy. The jet made a successful emergency landing at LAX.

Castaneda was at a home on Myron Street when he was doused with the fuel, the suit states. He suffered "severe and lasting injuries" that required medical care and attention and he also experienced lost income, the suit stated.

Several other lawsuits were previously filed by other plaintiffs against Delta stemming from the fuel dump.