The families of the victims who died in the Ethiopian Airlines crash are planning to sue Boeing and its insurers for around $2.5 million per person. These lawsuits could come into effect if it is fully established that there was a link in similarities between the crash last year and this year's crash.
The Ethiopian Airlines crash resulted in the deaths of 157 people. The talk of compensation is gaining more traction in the light of the United States Federal Aviation Administration admitting similarities between Sunday’s crash and a previous one in Asia, about five months ago. If this link is fully established, then the lawsuits would be coming as Boeing would be found liable for causing the deaths of all these people due to its own negligence in its manufacturing process.
As of now, over 41 countries have banned the B737 MAX 8 and 9 from their airspaces. The American government has also banned this aircraft from its airspaces.
Boeing announced Thursday that it was suspending deliveries of its 737 Max jets to airlines in the wake of many countries in the world banning the aircraft.
The Guardian Nigeria reported that although the initial insurance will be covered by Ethiopian Airlines' insurers, they may seek to recover these funds from the insurers of Boeing, only if they can prove the faulty nature if the planes.
"If there were to be anything defective in terms of the plane or any of its components, then it would be possible to bring a claim against the manufacturer as well as the airline," the head of law firm Irwin Mitchell’s travel litigation group, Clive Garner, said.
Header image credit - The Straits Times