Paul Lewis/SINGAPORE
The first of several expected lawsuits arising from last December's crash of a SilkAir Boeing 737-300 has been filed against Boeing, in an attempt to force the Indonesian-led investigation to release more information about the possible cause of the accident at Palembang, Indonesia.
A US firm of attorneys, Kreindler & Kreindler, has filed for $25 million damages against Boeing in the federal court of the southern district of New York on behalf of the US family of an American Express executive killed in the December 19 crash. Boeing has denied the negligence claim and is petitioning to move the case to either Singapore or Indonesia.
The legal action signifies mounting frustration with the pace of the six-month long investigation, which has still not produced a preliminary report. "We're still doing an examination of the systems and human performance aspects-it's still open. I've no deadline," says Indonesian chief accident investigator Oetarjo Diran.
Around 70 different families from the 104 people in the accidents have retained US lawyers, including many Singaporeans. Kreindler & Kreindler, which is representing some 20 families, has been involved in legal action arising from the 1994 US Airways and 1991 United Airlines 737 crashes in Pittsburgh and Colorado Springs respectively.
Uncommanded rudder deflection has been cited as a probable cause in both accidents. The US legal firm is alleging a link with the SilkAir crash. "We think that might have happened in this case because the aircraft rolled over and went into a steep dive," says Kreindler's David Nance.
The investigation has been impeded by the degree of destruction and the disabling of the cockpit voice and flight data recorders minutes before the 737's dive. One suggested possibility is that fluid leaking into the electrical and electronics bay shortcircuited both recorders and the rudder yaw damper coupler.
"We're not ruling out other potential causes, such as moisture in the avionics bay," says the Nolan Law Group. The Chicago-based firm, also representing families, adds: "It's very difficult for us to sit here and say what the probable cause is when we're prevented from taking part in the investigation."
Both firms do not rule out subpoenaing officials from the US National Transportation Safety Board who have been assisting the investigation. It is suggested that their "factual observations" could shed light on the other widely circulating theory that the crash was the result of pilot suicide.
"There is a lot of belief in that (suicide), but we need to test this through the legal process," says Nolan, adding this would then raise the question of "who put that man in the cockpit?"
Source: Flight International
