Cessna faces lawsuit from soccer group.
The Brazilian Football Confederation has accused Cessna Aircraft Company of ignoring or lying about severe rust on a plane the soccer organization owned, in a new federal lawsuit filed in Orlando.
The confederation says the 8-year-old plane underwent inspection in 2014 at a Cessna service center at Orlando International Airport.
Cessna told the confederation that the “wings were corrosion free …” but there was a “lack of adherence to established procedures in commercial and business aviation” during the inspection, according to the lawsuit.
The group says it paid Cessna for the maintenance, but later inspections showed “severe internal corrosion throughout the Cessna 680.”
Cessna declined to comment on the lawsuit. A spokeswoman cited a policy against commenting on any litigation.
The confederation claims it tried to make extensive repairs on the Cessna 680, but the corrosion was so severe that the aircraft was decommissioned. The Cessna 680 aircraft lists for $5 million to $7 million.
Brazilian soccer has a tragic recent history with air travel. In November 2016, a larger Avro RJ85 carrying 77 players of the team from Chapeco, Brazil, ran out of fuel and crashed, leaving only six survivors — three of whom were players.
The lawsuit doesn’t name a dollar figure for damages sought by the confederation, but seeks a jury trial and “actual damages, including direct, incidental, and consequential damages, plus interest, and for plaintiff ’s attorneys fees, litigation costs, and expenses, and for any and all further relief this Court believes just.”
The lawsuit says that Cessna knew about problems with rust in the 680 model since the model debuted in the late 1990s.
Company sold
A Casselberry-based healthcare staffing firm with 650 employees around the U.S. has been acquired by Atlanta-based Jackson Healthcare.
Avant Healthcare Professionals specializes in international recruitment and placement of healthcare professionals and provides clinical and cultural training and support
Avant was founded in 2003 by CEO Shari Dingle Costantini, who was recently named Ernst & Young’s Florida Entrepreneur of the Year in health care. It has been recognized as one of the top 50 fastest-growing women-led companies in the U.S and listed in the INC 5000 multiple times.
She said of the EY Award: “Winning Entrepreneur of the Year and being recognized by this prestigious program was only possible through the combined efforts of the tremendous and gifted team at Avant. It is a privilege to be able to change lives in such a profound way both here in
the U.S. and throughout the world.”
Costantini will report to Jackson Healthcare Group President Scott L’Heureux, who leads several other companies owned by Jackson Healthcare in Orlando.
“Jackson Healthcare brings us the strength of one of the nation’s largest healthcare staffing organizations. We will leverage this to meet the tremendous market demand,” Costantini said.
Jackson Healthcare says it is the third-largest U.S. healthcare staffing firm by revenue and is Atlanta’s 17th largest private company.
I-Drive NASCAR
An Orlando attraction, I-Drive NASCAR, listed its more than four-acre property for sale recently, but company officials said Thursday they don’t intend to sell.
The listing with CBRE real estate brokers came as the NASCAR-licensed indoor karting facility faced new competition from the sprawling $32 million Andretti Indoor Karting facility that opened in September, just a couple of miles down the road on Universal Boulevard.
The online listing for the property, 5228 Vanguard St., disappeared shortly after the Sentinel called I-Drive NASCAR about it.
“It’s not for sale,” said Alejandro Pezzini, COO of the facility’s owner. “We listed it just to see what kind of offers we might get, what the market is like.”
The company bought the former warehouse and 4.59 acres in 2011 for $3.4 million, and performed a renovation of about $3.5 million, according to court records.
The NASCAR facility has 88,100 square feet of indoor space, including the track and an event space. That compares to 150,000 square feet at Andretti.
Pezzini acknowledged that his company was concerned about competition from Andretti when it opened, but he said business has been good the last few months.
“Tourism is so strong in Orlando right now, and we’re benefiting from that,” he said.