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Jury Awards $28 Million to Family of Ethiopian 737 Max Crash Victim in First U.S. Damages Trial

The verdict marks the first U.S. damages trial from the Ethiopian crash, with jurors asked only to set compensation after Boeing accepted responsibility.

FILE - Wreckage is piled at the crash scene of Ethiopian Airlines flight ET302 near Bishoftu, Ethiopia, March 11, 2019. (AP Photo/Mulugeta Ayene, File)
FILE - In this March 11, 2019, file photo, rescuers work at the scene of an Ethiopian Airlines flight crash near Bishoftu, Ethiopia. Pilot Bernd Kai von Hoesslin pleaded with his bosses for more training on the Boeing Max, just weeks before the Ethiopian Airline's jet crashed, killing everyone on board. (AP Photo/Mulugeta Ayene, File)
FILE - Candles are lit on a memorial wall during an anniversary service at the Holy Trinity Cathedral in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, March 8, 2020, to remember those who died in the Ethiopian Airlines flight ET302 crash. (AP Photo/Mulugeta Ayene, File)
People hold a banner with pictures of victims of crashed Ethiopian Airlines flight 302 Boeing 737 MAX 8 during Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee hearing about Boeing’s commitment to address safety concerns in the wake of a January 2024 mid-air emergency involving a new 737 MAX, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 2, 2025. REUTERS/Ken Cedeno/File Photo

Overview

  • Jurors in Chicago awarded about $28.45 million to the family of Shikha Garg, a 32-year-old United Nations consultant who died on Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 in 2019.
  • The award included $10 million for grief and $10 million for pain and suffering, with the balance covering other compensatory damages.
  • A separate agreement brings the family's total recovery to about $35.8 million, and attorneys for the family said Boeing will not appeal.
  • Boeing issued an apology to families of victims from the Ethiopian and Lion Air crashes and said it respects relatives' rights to pursue damages trials.
  • Most wrongful-death suits have been settled, jurors were instructed not to weigh liability, and a Texas judge separately approved a DOJ deal requiring about $1.1 billion for fines, victim compensation and safety improvements.