Families sue over plane death connected to Tom Cruise film ‘Mena’

Relatives of a man killed in a plane being used to transport crews for the Tom Cruise movie “Mena” in September filed a lawsuit Friday against the production companies behind the film.

Alan Purwin, 54, died Sept. 11 in Colombia. His widow, Kathryn Purwin, and two adult children Kyle and Michaela Purwin, filed the wrongful death suit against Cross Creek Pictures LLC, Imagine Entertainment LLC, Quadrant Pictures, Vendian Entertainment LLC and the estate of Carlos Berl, the man who piloted the plane.

The suit seeks unspecified damages.

Representatives for the production companies could not be immediately reached for comment.

The suit alleges the companies allowed Berl to fly the Piper Aerostar without making sure he had the proper skills to do so. The plane crashed over rugged terrain while Purwin was aboard sitting in the rear seat.

Purwin was chairman of Helinet, a helicopter service based at Van Nuys Airport. The company assists news programs and filmmakers in providing aerial shoots.

Purwin was raised in North Hollywood.

“Mena,” a drama-thriller set to be released in January is about Barry Seal (played by Cruise), a TWA pilot recruited by the CIA to give recognition against the emerging communist threat in Central America.

— City News Service