More families of passengers who died in Lion Air crash prepare to sue Boeing after CEO’s apology for faulty flight systems
- Boeing acknowledged sensor malfunctioned and Dennis Muilenburg said last week that a new software update would prevent future incidents
Family members and lawyers said on Monday that CEO Dennis Muilenburg’s comment last week related to an automated flight system was an admission that helps their cases.
The anti-stall system is suspected as a cause of the Lion Air crash in October and an Ethiopian Airlines crash in March that also involved a MAX 8 jet. The two crashes killed a total of 346 people.
Preliminary reports into both crashes found that faulty sensor readings erroneously triggered the anti-stall system that pushed the plane’s nose down. Pilots of each plane struggled in vain to regain control.
Families of 11 Lion Air victims said at a news conference organised by Jakarta law firm Kailimang & Ponto that they are joining dozens of other Indonesian families in filing lawsuits against Boeing.
“Boeing’s CEO explicitly apologised to 346 passenger families,” said Merdian Agustin, whose husband died in the crash. “We hope this is good momentum to have compensation rights.”
Agustin, the mother of three children, said that she and dozens of other families have not received 1.2 billion rupiah (US$85,000) compensation they are entitled to in Indonesia because they refused to sign a “release and discharge” document that extinguishes their right to sue Lion Air, Boeing or their subsidiaries.
