PPRuNe Forums - View Single Post - Passengers in BA 777 LAS Incident to sue......
Old 1st Dec 2015, 21:58
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msbbarratt
 
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As I recall, nobody slapped Boeing or Rolls for a poorly designed fuel/oil heat exchanger design that resulted in quite a few more (and serious) injuries when BA 038 came in for a dead-stick landing. As well as causing more than a few mysterious uncommanded thrust roll-backs.
There are some differences. I recall that it took a lot of detective work to find out what caused the BA038 crash. I can remember that the CAA took a very close look at a lot of things such as the fuel system software. In the end a bunch of ground tests showed that the fault was as you described. Crucially, all this was learned after the crash, not before.

However in this case it seems (and I realise I'm prejudging, the report is not out yet AFAIK) that there was a known issue with the compressor disk (which is what we're all assuming to be the root cause). The difference is that this problem was well known before the compressor disk let go, not afterwards. From a court case point of view, that temporal arrangement is not good for Boeing's or GE's defence.

However

I think that it is highly inappropriate that a civil case is being brought in advance of the report being issued. The investigators should be free to conduct their work unencumbered by the knowledge that their words are going to have more of an impact. They should not have to worry about how their words are going to be interpreted in a court case, they should be allowed to right their conclusions freely.

Now they are implicitly pressurised to come up with a definitive attribution of blame (for that is what a court wants) whereas in fact the true conclusions may be more much more vague.

Of course the investigators in this case are most likely going to be highly professional and immune to the pressure, but it's still going to be in the back of their minds. I think that we'd all be better off if they didn't have to think about it at all.

They should be writing letters of thanks.
Well lets see what the investigation reveals first. If warranted then someone or a company should be hauled through the courts by the authorities. If this civil claim stops that happening then we won't get the best attainable improvement in aviation safety.
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