Southwest Airlines Pilots Association Sues Boeing Over Grounding Of 737 MAX
DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - The Southwest Airlines Pilots Association filed a lawsuit against Boeing on Monday for "deliberately misleading the organization and its pilots about the 737 MAX aircraft."
The lawsuit, filed in Dallas County District Court, alleges SWAPA pilots agreed to fly the 737 MAX aircraft based on Boeing's representations that it was airworthy and essentially the same as the time-tested 737 aircraft that its pilots have flown for years, the association said in a news release.
The pilots association said those representations were false and "Boeing's errors cost the lives of 346 people, damaged the critical bond between pilots and passengers, and reduced opportunities for air
travel across the United States and around the world."
"As pilots, there is nothing more important to us than the safety of our passengers," said Captain Jonathan L. Weaks, President of SWAPA. "We have to be able to trust Boeing to truthfully disclose the information we need to safely operate our aircraft. In the case of the 737 MAX, that absolutely did not happen."
The pilots association said the grounding of the 737 MAX has caused the elimination of more than 30,000 scheduled Southwest flights.
"It is critical that Boeing takes whatever time is necessary to safely return the MAX to service," added Captain Weaks. "Our pilots should not be expected to take a significant and ever-expanding financial loss as a result of Boeing's negligence. We look forward to a solution that helps Boeing restore the confidence of both the flying
public and the pilots who operate its aircraft."
Click here to read the full lawsuit.
