British Airways passengers aboard a plan which burst into flames on the runway at Las Vegas McCarran Airport have filed a lawsuit claiming damages against Boeing and the engine maker.
A London-based law firm file the action in Chicago on behalf of 65 passengers against Boeing Co and GE Aviation.
The lawsuit apportions no blame for the incident on British Airways, noting ‘the pilots and cabin crew performed heroically in guiding the aircraft to an emergency stop.’
The National Transportation Safety Board investigation into the incident says the fire likely started from a spool inside the left engine.
The lawsuit said the plane was ‘defective and unreasonably dangerous,’ and both companies were aware the parts were known to be prone to ‘fracture and failure.’
G Aviation would not comment on the specifics of the lawsuit but a spokesman said the GE90 engine model involved ‘is among the most reliable jet engines in commercial aviation history. We continue to monitor and analyze the daily performance of more than 2,000 GE90 engines in airline service and we are not aware of any issues that would hazard the safe flight of aircraft powered by those engines.’
The action brought by Stewarts Law could grow to up to 100 plaintiffs, the firm’s partner James Healy-Pratt said.
