SEATTLE - Boeing Co has reached settlement agreements in more than 90% of the wrongful death claims filed in federal court after the 2018 crash of a Lion Air 737 MAX in Indonesia that killed all 189 people on board, a court filing on Tuesday said, Eric M. Johnson reports for Reuters. Continue reading original article.
The Intelligent Aerospace take:
July 10, 2020 -Boeing has resolved nearly all of the wrongful death claims resulting from the first fatal crash involving its 737 Max passenger jet in 2018. Months later in 2019, another Max jet crashed killing all on board and the updated 737 was grounded worldwide. Boeing has been working with the FAA to get the jet recertified for air travel, though carriers have been canceling orders for the aircraft, largely because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
"The pandemic appears to be the reason for cancellations and deferrals, at least formally," says Nicolas Jouan, Aerospace and Defense Analyst at GlobalData. "For instance, SMBC declared that the deferral would extend until 2025, which is a reasonable timeframe to assess the true long term impact of COVID-19 on commercial aviation. However, while COVID-19 has certainly had a profound impact on MAX’s troubles, it is not the sole cause as companies such as Air Canada or Air Lease Corporation canceled orders in massive proportions earlier this year without even directly invoking COVID-19 disruptions. It is becoming increasingly likely that we will see a FAA recertification before the end of the year, but doubts remain regarding the potential of the MAX to preserve, let alone conquer, market shares in a shrinking commercial aviation industry."
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Jamie Whitney, Associate Editor
Intelligent Aerospace
