According to Manufacturing.net, Boeing is facing its first civil trial over the 2019 Ethiopia crash that killed all 157 people on board, more than six years after the disaster. The trial in Chicago involves two remaining cases out of dozens of wrongful death lawsuits, focusing on compensation for families of 28-year-old Mercy Ndivo and 36-year-old UN consultant Shikha Garg. Boeing has already accepted responsibility for both the Ethiopia crash and a similar Indonesia crash five months earlier that killed 189 people. The eight-person jury won’t determine liability but will decide how much Boeing should pay, with the company having settled most other cases confidentially. The trial could begin as soon as Tuesday, though settlements could still occur even after jury selection.
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The Long Road to Justice
Here’s the thing that really gets me – it’s been over six years since that plane went down. Six years. For the families of Mercy Ndivo and Shikha Garg, that’s half a childhood for the daughter Ndivo left behind. The fact that we’re only now getting to the first civil trial tells you everything about how corporate accountability works in America. Boeing settled most cases quietly, probably figuring it was cheaper than fighting in court. But these two families? They’re still waiting for some measure of justice.
And look at the timing – we’re talking about cases that were originally among five that could have gone to trial this week, but now it’s down to two because of the government shutdown. It’s just another layer of bureaucratic delay for people who’ve already waited far too long. The lawyer representing many victims’ families says Boeing hasn’t been mediating in good faith, which honestly doesn’t surprise me given how this has played out.
What Actually Went Wrong
So let’s talk about what actually happened with these planes. The 737 Max had this flight-control system called MCAS that was supposed to prevent stalls. Basically, it would automatically push the plane’s nose down if it thought the aircraft was climbing too steeply. But here’s the problem – it relied on data from just one sensor. One single point of failure.
When that sensor failed, the system kept forcing the nose down while pilots fought to keep the plane in the air. For six terrifying minutes in the Ethiopia crash, pilots were bombarded with alarms and warnings while this software essentially wrestled them for control. And Boeing knew about these issues? They’d been charged with conspiracy to commit fraud for deceiving regulators about the system.
The Bigger Picture
Now here’s where it gets really concerning. Boeing’s potentially getting off relatively easy with the Justice Department too. There’s a pending agreement that would let them avoid prosecution by paying another $1.1 billion in fines and compensation. That sounds like a lot until you realize we’re talking about 346 dead people across two crashes.
I keep wondering – when does corporate responsibility actually mean something? Boeing says they’re “deeply sorry” in their statements, but then they fight families in court for years. They accept responsibility, but only after being forced to. There’s a disconnect here that’s hard to ignore. The families aren’t just seeking money – they’re seeking acknowledgment that their loved ones mattered, that their lives weren’t just collateral damage in the pursuit of profit.
This trial, whenever it actually happens, will be about putting a number on that value. And honestly? No amount of money will ever be enough. But it’s the closest thing to accountability these families are likely to get.
