Boeing 737 MAX Victims’ Families Retain Kreindler

NEW YORK, NY, April 2, 2019 — Kreindler & Kreindler, one of the largest aviation accident law firms in the world has been retained by multiple families who lost loved ones in the crash of the Boeing 737 Max operated as Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 on March 10, 2019. On behalf of the families Kreindler is representing, and as leading aviation safety advocates, the firm will vigorously pursue legal claims against Boeing and others who are responsible for this tragic and preventable crash which took the lives of 157 people.

The horrific crashes of two newly designed Boeing 737 Max airplanes within the span of a few months, due to virtually identical failures of an on-board computer system, raises the most serious aviation safety questions and exposes several alarming weaknesses in the aviation manufacturing and certification process.

Kreindler attorney Brian Alexander laid out several errors that could be attributed to the manufacturer. “Beyond Boeing’s defective design, there are significant aggravating factors. First, Boeing did not inform pilots about how the MCAS would work and pilots were only required to complete a two-and-one-half hour computer training course regarding the Boeing 737 MAX before flying the airplane with passengers on board. Second, Boeing’s design violated a basic principle of aircraft design by allowing a single point failure to trigger a sequence of events that could result in a loss of control. Third, notwithstanding dangers that should have been realized, Boeing made critical safety features ‘optional.’ Boeing and the FAA should have required as standard equipment the optional MCAS Angle of Attack (AOA) display and optional AOA disagree light. Finally, for at least four months before the crash of Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, Boeing knew about the dangers of the MCAS and continued to insist that the Boeing 737 MAX was safe when it should have told its airline customers not to fly the airplanes until Boeing fixed the MCAS.”

“Safety cannot be optional when it comes to airplanes. Putting passengers at risk by making safety features optional defies common sense. Boeing’s decision to charge extra for critical safety systems that could have averted these disasters is just inexplicable,” said Kreindler attorney Anthony Tarricone.

“How could this happen?” asked Kreindler attorney Marc Moller. “To us it appears that in Boeing’s effort to keep pace with its competitor, Airbus, design decisions were made by Boeing that gravely reduced the margin of safety pilots expect when they are at the controls of commercial aircraft. Profit over safety may ultimately explain the two tragedies.”

“The Kreindler firm is focused on helping the families of loved ones lost on Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302. “The cases arising from the Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 tragedy must be heard by a U.S. court,” said Kreindler attorney Justin Green. “This case is critically important to the U.S. because Boeing designed and manufactured the Boeing 737 MAX in the U.S. and the Federal Aviation Administration certified the airplane as airworthy here. Moreover, the case will include families of U.S. victims suing a U.S. company over negligence that occurred here in the U.S,” continued Green. “While U.S. courts historically have declined to hear cases against Boeing after a Boeing airplane crashes outside the U.S., no U.S. court should decline to hear the landmark case.”

About Kreindler & Kreindler

Kreindler & Kreindler LLP is one of the largest and most distinguished aviation accident law firms in the world. Kreindler attorneys have served as lead counsel in nearly every major commercial aviation disaster litigation over the last six decades. Kreindler’s team of attorneys include the following:

Brian Alexander has served as lead lawyer for the plaintiffs in numerous international aviation crash cases against Boeing, including the Kenya Airways Flight 507 Boeing 737 crash in Cameroon. He successfully served the plaintiffs as the lead attorney versus Boeing in the last major case in the United States against the manufacturer, the 2013 crash of Asiana Airlines Flight 214 in San Francisco, California.

Justin Green is the past president of the International Air & Transportation Safety Bar Association (IATSBA), was trained as a USMC pilot, and is currently a licensed airplane and helicopter pilot. He has represented families in many cases, including Asiana flight 214 at San Francisco International Airport, Turkish Airlines flight 1951 near Amsterdam and the disappearance of Malaysian Airlines flight 370.

Marc Moller has served as the Plaintiffs’ Liaison Counsel in litigation arising from the September 11th terrorist attacks and his trial results have set records for recoveries in the jurisdiction in which the actions were filed. He has represented plaintiffs in every type of aviation aircraft disaster case, including Turkish Airlines 1951 near Amsterdam, Comair flight 3407 near Buffalo and American Airlines flight 965 near Cali, Columbia.

Dan Rose has served as a U.S. Navy carrier jet pilot and is an active licensed pilot. He has investigated and litigated numerous commercial airline cases and products liability cases involving defective aviation components — including engines, fuel systems, auto pilot systems and flight control systems — against aircraft manufacturers, including Boeing.

Anthony Tarricone has served as past president of the American Association for Justice. He was co-lead counsel for the plaintiffs versus Boeing in the 2009 Turkish Air 737 crash in Amsterdam. In that case, Kreindler represented over 60 families.

The Kreindler firm has recorded the largest recovery for a single disaster in the history of aviation to date — nearly $3 billion — against Libya and Pan Am in lawsuits arising out of the bombing of Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. Furthermore, Kreindler has written the leading legal treatise on aviation litigation (Aviation Accident Litigation published by Matthew Bender).