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4mo ago

Jeju Air Crash Families Sue Boeing in U.S. Courts Over Alleged 737 Design Failures

Families pursue accountability in U.S. courts during an ongoing South Korean probe.

TOPSHOT - Firefighters and rescue personnel work near the wreckage of a Jeju Air Boeing 737-800 series aircraft after the plane crashed and burst into flames at Muan International Airport in South Jeolla Province, some 288 kilometres southwest of Seoul on December 29, 2024. A Jeju Air plane carrying 181 people from Bangkok to South Korea crashed on arrival December 29, colliding with a barrier and bursting into flames, with only two survivors rescued so far and 120 confirmed dead. (Photo by JUNG YEON-JE / AFP) (Photo by JUNG YEON-JE/AFP via Getty Images)
In this file photo, firefighters remove tarpaulin sheets covering the debris of a Jeju Air passenger plane at Muan International Airport, southwestern South Korea, on Jan. 13, 2025, following its crash on Dec. 29, 2024. (Yonhap)
A Jeju Air Boeing 737 aircraft. (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Ben Suskind)

Overview

  • Seattle-based Herrmann Law Group filed a King County suit for 14 families, and the Wisner Law Firm filed a separate case in Illinois.
  • Complaints allege antiquated electrical and hydraulic architectures on the 737-800 deprived the crew of critical backups to land safely.
  • Plaintiffs cite the absence of a ram air turbine and manual APU activation as factors that left the jet vulnerable after a reported bird strike.
  • The December 2024 flight belly-landed with the gear retracted, overran the runway, hit a concrete-reinforced berm, and a post-impact fire killed 179 people.
  • Investigators in South Korea have issued interim findings suggesting pilot error, with a final report expected in June 2026, while the lawsuits also fault Boeing’s safety culture dating to its 1997 merger.