Boeing 737 Max 8 Aircraft May Never Fly Again

Chicago, Thursday August 29, 2019 – Ribbeck Law Chartered, which represents the majority of families of the victims of the deadly Boeing 737 MAX 8 crashes, and Global Aviation Law Group, today filed additional lawsuits against Boeing for an Egyptian family in U.S. federal court in Chicago.

As the Boeing 737 Max 8 woes continue, industry insiders are wondering if the beleaguered aircraft will ever fly again. In second quarter earnings call on July 24, 2019, Boeing’s CEO Dennis Muilenburg said the company may consider discontinuing production of its 737 Max planes if the worldwide grounding continues.  In addition, if the 737 Max aircrafts aren’t back in service soon, some 12,000 jobs could be at risk in Boeing's Renton, Washington, factories.

Ribbeck Law Chartered has filed 44 cases against the Boeing Company in Federal Court in Chicago for the recent Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft crashes so far. Manuel von Ribbeck of Ribbeck Law Chartered stated “Today, we have added an additional case for a passenger from Egypt who died in the Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crash. Our clients are seeking more than one billion US dollars for their damages. Ribbeck Law Chartered and Global Aviation Law Group represent 67 families of both crashes, the majority of the passengers and cabin crew members affected by Boeing 737 Max 8 disasters and as we prepare the complaints, we will continue to file additional lawsuits to seek justice for our clients in the courts of the United States of America.”  This latest lawsuit filed by a mother who lost her son in the tragic Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, is yet another, in a growing number of lawsuits being filed against Boeing, the manufacturer of the 737 Max 8 aircrafts. In total there were six victims from Egypt, all of whom worked for the country's Foreign Ministry.

“When I wished my son a safe trip, I had no idea it was going to be the last time I ever saw or spoke to him,” remarked the mother. “I am beyond devastated having lost my oldest son in this air tragedy.” “In the months that followed, discovering Boeing knew about a potential flaw in their software, but still decided to leave this plane in service is shameful.” The still grieving mother continues, “It appears to me that Boeing put corporate profits ahead of the lives of its passengers.” “With this latest news about the airplanes and how they are still grounded almost after a year of the first crash means something very serious is wrong.” Dr. Mohamed, the passenger’s brother stated “after my brother was killed in the crash, we felt an unbearable loss in our family.  I felt I had lost all things in life, I had lost my life, lost our hopes, lost our dreams, he was the leader of our family.  We want to punish all responsible for this dangerous incident.”

With thousands of 737 Max orders on its books, these latest developments are an enormous blow to Boeing. While the official causes of the 737 Max crashes appear to be similar, they are still under investigation. The investigation teams both in Indonesia and Ethiopia have been zeroing in on faulty sensors and a flight control system, which is designed to push the nose down in the air. In March the Transport Minister of Ethiopia, remarked that the two crashes have “clear similarities” between them.

Furthermore, data from satellites shows the final track of Ethiopia Airlines Flight ET302 is nearly identical to that of the Lion Air flight that crashed on October 29, 2018. It has been documented that jack screws, which are used to manipulate the control surfaces on the horizontal stabilizer that pitch the nose up and down, have been found at both crash sites. Investigators noted both jack screws were set to send both ill-fated aircrafts into a dive.

“After the Lion Air 737 Max 8 catastrophe, Boeing issued a series of recovery steps pilots needed to take in order to prevent a similar tragedy, however, these directives which were grossly inadequate and did not prevent this second tragedy from occurring,” states Monica Kelly of Ribbeck Law Chartered. “Crash investigators believe the Ethiopian Airlines ‘crew followed all of the procedures’ and made repeated attempts to stabilize the aircraft and regain control of the jet from the same automated anti-stall system MCAS that had been implicated in the Lion Air crash.” Monica Kelly goes on to say, “This is truly a case of corporate greed, whereby Boeing pushed ahead with flights with no concern for their passengers.” Ms. Kelly concludes, “These cases are set to be heard again in court on September 17 for the Ethiopian Airlines case and October 17 for the Lion Air crash”

Deon Botha of Global Aviation Law Group added that “if no settlement is reached in court soon, Global Aviation Law Group, will petition the court that the Lion Air and Ethiopian Airlines cases be consolidated to avoid contradicting orders from two different judges and together with Ribbeck Law Chartered, will bring the case in front of a jury.”

Mr. Deon Botha further stated, “We expect to file more lawsuits in the next few days. We are hoping we will be done filing all of our cases in the next few weeks.” “Our families are seeking justice, and most importantly that design defects of the 737 Max 8 aircrafts be corrected.”  Mr. Botha added.

The case against Boeing for the Lion Air Flight 610 crash is set for mediation the week of October 7, 2019. The Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 and Lion Air cases, which are pending in the same federal court in Chicago, are both set for status hearing in September and October.

Deon Botha further stated “our Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 clients would like to know why weren’t the 737 Boeing Max 8 aircrafts grounded after the first crash?  Was the FAA complicit?  Was the FAA covering up for Boeing’s criminal behavior?  Boeing knew these planes were flawed and it did not stop its defective aircrafts from flying until the second plane crashed killing and additional 157 people.  Boeing’s criminal acts must be punished.  The families have asked our law firm not to stop fighting until we find the truth and those responsible are punished by the courts.”

Global Aviation Law Group representatives in Nairobi, Attorney David Njoroge of Igeria & Ngugi Advocates, stated “Boeing’s intentional conduct not grounding the 737 Max 8 aircraft after the first crash is a crime, murder.  We will seek that the authorities in Kenya and Ethiopia and some of the multiple countries that lost their citizens file criminal cases against Boeing’s CEO, its board of directors and anyone involved in the decision making of this company.  Boeing’s company’s conduct is beyond outrageous, it is criminal.”  

Ribbeck Law Chartered has represented victims from 74 different countries involved in 48 commercial aviation plane crashes. Ribbeck Law Chartered represents the largest number of victims of plane crashes in the world.  

Ribbeck Law Chartered, headquartered in Chicago with affiliated offices in London, Shanghai, Rome, Jakarta, Istanbul, and Lima concentrates in litigation arising from aviation disasters and catastrophic events worldwide. Ribbeck Law Chartered represents more than 66 families of the victims of the crashes of Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 involving Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft, the largest number of claimants represented by any law firm in the world.

Global Aviation Law Group is a partnership of American, international law firms and lawyers from around the world with offices in 40 different countries in the USA, EU, Africa and Asia.  Global Aviation Law Group and Ribbeck law Chartered will together prosecute the Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crash cases against Boeing.

Currently, Ribbeck Law Chartered represents families of passengers from America, Europe, Africa, Asia and the Pacific Basin, and is litigating in American Courts representing victims from airplane incidents that occurred in North America, Asia, South America, Central America, the Caribbean, Europe, and Africa. Ribbeck Law Chartered’s success is shown in its record-breaking compensation for the families of the victims and improvements in aviation safety worldwide.