Boeing has reached an eleventh-hour settlement with the family of a woman who lost her life in the 2019 crash of a 737 MAX jet, averting a scheduled federal civil trial. The agreement, reached on Monday, was confirmed by multiple sources familiar with the case, although specific details of the settlement were not disclosed.
The tragic Ethiopian Airlines crash, which claimed 157 lives, was set for trial in Chicago on Tuesday. Originally, six plaintiffs were involved in the lawsuit, but only one remained after the others had settled, according to sources close to the proceedings.
During the scheduled court session, Judge Jorge Alonso will be informed of the settlement details and must approve it for the case to be officially closed. Sources confirmed this was a "damage-only trial," meaning no evidence on Boeing's liability would have been presented.
The final plaintiff was linked to the case of Manisha Nukavarapu, an Indian-born woman aboard Ethiopian Airlines flight ET302, which crashed shortly after departing from Addis Ababa on March 10, 2019. Nukavarapu was a second-year medical resident at East Tennessee State University, aspiring to become an endocrinologist, and was traveling to visit her sister in Kenya.
Documents indicate that from April 2019 to March 2021, the families of 115 crash victims filed wrongful death and negligence claims against Boeing. As of October 2023, 30 cases on behalf of 29 victims remain unresolved. The next group of cases is scheduled for trial on April 7, 2025.
Boeing has acknowledged its responsibility in the crashes, citing the role of its Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS), a flight control feature implicated in both the Ethiopian Airlines disaster and the 2018 Lion Air crash that killed 189 people. Following these incidents, the 737 MAX fleet was grounded worldwide for over 20 months as investigations were conducted.
Boeing has stated that more than 90% of civil cases related to these crashes have been settled. The company has paid billions of dollars to crash victims’ families as part of these legal proceedings, as confirmed by a Boeing attorney in a recent hearing.
Boeing Prepares for Civil Trial Over 2019 Ethiopian Airlines Crash