Boeing evades MAX crash trial with last-minute settlement

BOEING has reached a settlement with a man whose family died in a 737 MAX crash in 2019, a law firm told AFP on Friday, meaning the US aviation giant will avoid a federal trial slated for Monday.

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Paul Njoroge, who lost his wife and three children in the Ethiopian Airlines disaster in which 157 people died, was to seek damages from Boeing in a case in Chicago.

“The case has settled for a confidential amount,” said a spokesperson for Clifford Law, the firm representing Njoroge, whose mother-in-law also died in the crash.

“The aviation team at Clifford Law Offices has been working round-the-clock in preparation for trial, but the mediator was able to help the parties come to an agreement on behalf of Paul Njoroge,” added Robert Clifford, a senior partner at Clifford, in a statement.

Until now, Boeing has succeeded in avoiding civil trials connected to the 737 MAX crashes of 2018 and 2019, reaching a series of settlements, sometimes only hours before trials were set to begin.