Nearly a year since the first of two 737 Max planes went down, Boeing has begun providing financial compensation to hundreds of bereaved loved ones. Formally launched last week, the Boeing Financial Assistance Fund (BFAF) is set to pay out a total of $50 million to nearly 350 families.
"We are not looking to the financial wherewithal of the family or any passenger lost in those two accidents. All lives are equal and everyone will receive the same amount of money," said Kenneth Feinberg, BFAF's co-administrator.
Each family will get roughly $145,000 from the fund.
Lion Air flight 610, which crashed off the coast of Indonesia on October 29, 2018, was the first 737 Max plane to crash and killed all 189 people on board. Just five months later, 157 people were killed on another 737 Max plane, Ethiopian Airlines flight 302, which went down shortly after takeoff in Ethiopia's capital, Addis Ababa. The back-to-back crashes led to a global grounding of all 737 Max planes, disturbing air travel worldwide.
In the subsequent months, investigators and a company probe found that Boeing did not provide proper training for the plane's anti-stall software, called MCAS, which malfunctioned and sent the planes into nosedives. Federal regulators also came under fire for allowing an easing of inspection scrutiny on new aircrafts at the time.
"The recent 737 MAX tragedies weigh heavily on all of us at Boeing, and we continue to extend our deepest sympathies to the families and loved ones of all those on board," Dennis Muilenburg, Boeing's president and CEO, said in a statement. "The opening of this fund is an important step in our efforts to help affected families."
<i>Family members mourn at a burial service for the victims of the Ethiopian Airlines plane crash in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in March. Photo Credit: STR/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock</i>
Feinberg and co-administrator Camille Biros were hired by Boeing to manage the BFAF. The two veteran attorneys have extensive resumes, having previously administered the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001, the Gulf Coast Claims Facility for victims of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill in 2010, and the One Fund Boston for victims of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing, among others.
Families can receive the BFAF voluntarily and receiving funds does not bar recipients from pursuing separate damages through litigation.
"This is a separate stand alone assistance program," Feinberg said. Money will be dispersed "without any precondition, without any requirements, without any promises … to be used as each family may so decide."
The $50 million fund is half of the $100 million that Boeing pledged to provide following the two accidents. The other $50 million will be used to support development programs in the impacted communities, Boeing said in a press release.
A big-screen adaptation of the anime “Chainsaw Man” has topped the North American box office, beating a Springsteen biopic and “Black Phone 2.” The movie earned $17.25 million in the U.S. and Canada this weekend. “Black Phone 2” fell to second place with $13 million. Two new releases, the rom-com “Regretting You” and “Springsteen — Deliver Me From Nowhere,” earned $12.85 million and $9.1 million, respectively. “Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc” is based on the manga series about a demon hunter. It's another win for Sony-owned Crunchyroll, which also released a “Demon Slayer” film last month that debuted to a record $70 million.
The Federal Aviation Administration says flights departing for Los Angeles International Airport were halted briefly due to a staffing shortage at a Southern California air traffic facility. The FAA issued a temporary ground stop at one of the world’s busiest airports on Sunday morning soon after U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy predicted that travelers would see more flights delayed as the nation’s air traffic controllers work without pay during the federal government shutdown. The hold on planes taking off for LAX lasted an hour and 45 minutes and didn't appear to cause continued problems. The FAA said staffing shortages also delayed planes headed to Washington, Chicago and Newark, New Jersey on Sunday.
Boeing workers at three Midwest plants where military aircraft and weapons are developed have voted to reject the company’s latest contract offer and to continue a strike that started almost three months ago. The strike by about 3,200 machinists at the plants in the Missouri cities of St. Louis and St. Charles, and in Mascoutah, Illinois, is smaller in scale than a walkout last year by 33,000 Boeing workers who assemble commercial jetliners. The president of the International Association of Machinists says Sunday's outcome shows Boeing hasn't adequately addressed wages and retirement benefits. Boeing says Sunday's vote was close with 51% of union members opposing the revised offer.
