Chicago Jury Awards $29M to Family of UN Worker Killed in Ethiopian Airlines 737 MAX Crash
A Chicago jury has awarded $29 million in damages to the family of Michael "Mick" Ryan, a UN World Food Programme engineer who died in the 2019 Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 MAX crash. The civil suit, brought by Ryan's widow, is one of the final remaining cases against Boeing stemming from the MAX disasters. Unlike most plaintiffs who accepted confidential out-of-court settlements, Ryan's family chose to pursue a public jury trial.
A federal jury in Chicago has ordered Boeing to pay $29 million in damages to the family of an Irish-born United Nations worker who died in the tragic 2019 Ethiopian Airlines flight crash, according to reports from Birr Metrics citing a U.S. court official.
The civil lawsuit was initiated against the aircraft manufacturer by Naoise Connolly Ryan, the widow of Michael "Mick" Ryan. The 39-year-old humanitarian served as a structural engineer for the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and was among the 157 passengers and crew members who lost their lives when the Boeing 737 MAX crashed shortly after takeoff in Ethiopia.
Throughout his career, Mick Ryan was actively involved in several critical global humanitarian efforts, including combating the Ebola epidemic in Liberia and assisting Rohingya refugees. Additionally, a UN tribute celebrated his significant contributions and field work in Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Ethiopia.
This latest decision represents one of the final civil trials against Boeing stemming from two catastrophic 737 MAX disasters in late 2018 and early 2019, which claimed a combined total of 346 lives.
While the vast majority of claims resulting from these disasters have been resolved through confidential out-of-court settlements, Ryan's attorney, Steven Marks, indicated that his client deliberately chose to present the case before a jury rather than accepting a direct, non-public financial settlement from Boeing.
Boeing has previously expressed formal apologies for both accidents and acknowledged that flaws in its automated Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS)—commonly known as the anti-stall software—played a critical role. The aerospace giant did not immediately provide a statement regarding the jury's verdict on Wednesday.
This multi-million-dollar award in Chicago follows a previous high-profile verdict related to the same Ethiopian Airlines tragedy. In May, another Chicago jury awarded $49.5 million to the surviving relatives of Samya Stumo, a 24-year-old American passenger who also died in the plane crash.