AHMEDABAD- Families of victims from the Air India (AI) Flight 171 crash, which involved a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner en route from Ahmedabad (AMD) to London Gatwick (LGW), have engaged US law firm Beasley Allen to seek crucial flight data.
The incident on June 12 claimed 260 lives, including 241 onboard and 19 on the ground, leaving one survivor.
Principal lawyer Mike Andrews aims to uncover if technical faults contributed to the tragedy, potentially leading to lawsuits against Boeing under US product liability laws.
Over 80 families, encompassing passengers and ground victims, have signed contracts with the firm.
Photo: Mumbai Planes | Siddh DhuriUS Lawyer Can Sue Boeing
Mike Andrews represents families impacted by the devastating crash of Air India (AI) Flight 171. The Boeing 787-8 aircraft departed Ahmedabad (AMD) but plummeted shortly after takeoff, striking the mess building at BJ Medical College in Meghaninagar.
This resulted in 241 fatalities among the 242 people onboard, comprising 169 Indian nationals, 53 British nationals, seven Portuguese, one Canadian, and 19 deaths on the ground.
Ground victims included individuals cooking in the medical school, serving tea, or passing by on scooters, underscoring how aviation incidents affect unintended bystanders.
Andrews emphasizes the need for complete data from the flight data recorder (FDR) and cockpit voice recorder (CVR) to reconstruct events accurately, ET reported.
He criticizes narratives that prematurely blame pilot error based on limited information. The firm plans to file Right to Information applications with entities holding the FDR data, alongside direct appeals to Air India and the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB).
Local counsel assists in determining RTI applicability. Andrews avoids interfering with the AAIB probe and prefers non-litigious routes initially, though court petitions remain an option.
Photo: By Kambui – Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner VT-ANM, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=58290529Victim Families Demand Accountability
Over 80 families have contracted Beasley Allen, including those of passengers and ground casualties.
Andrews visited Gujarat twice, meeting affected relatives and participating in a candlelight vigil at the crash site on the two-month anniversary.
He observed the area’s return to normalcy, with lifted cordons and resumed traffic, evoking strong emotions among families seeing the site for the first time.
One family from Diu, who lost a daughter, tied rakhis on Andrews’ wrist during his visit. He briefly met the lone survivor, British national Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, at his Diu home, not as his lawyer, noting Ramesh had lost his brother Ajay.
Ramesh’s family has not signed with the firm. Andrews highlights this case’s uniqueness in his 30-year career, featuring a survivor and numerous ground deaths.
Photo: DnataPotential Lawsuits
If FDR and CVR data reveal manufacturing or design defects, the lawyer intends to file individual actions in the US federal courts against Boeing.
US product liability laws apply since Boeing operates from the US, where key executives, engineers, decisions, and witnesses reside.
This approach fixes accountability and drives changes, whether in pilot training, maintenance, or aircraft design.
Andrews remains curious and agenda-free, focusing on determining causes. Findings could prompt fixes for recurring issues seen in prior incidents.
The firm operates on a contingency basis, charging no upfront costs but a 30% fee on any recovery. Andrews heads to the UK next to meet more families.
Photo: Utkarsh Thakkar (Vimanspotter)Aviation Safety Lessons
The crash exposes vulnerabilities affecting everyone, not just ticket holders. Andrews stresses that thorough investigations prevent future incidents by addressing root causes, be they human error, local maintenance lapses, or systemic design flaws.
Families seek answers to hard questions, aiming for a “new normal” amid grief, rather than full closure.
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The post The US Lawyer Can Sue Boeing After Air India 787 Crash appeared first on Aviation A2Z.
