 "Suing a global airline for turbulent flight? This treaty holds key to what you get")
On Wednesday, Singapore Airlines CEO Goh Choon Phong expressed heartfelt apologies, acknowledging the distress caused by the recent incident. He deeply regretted the traumatic experience endured by all on board SQ321.
However, the airline faces turbulence on the ground as passengers in all likelihood seek compensation under the Montreal Convention for the ordeal they went through.
Tragically, one passenger lost their life and the airline revealed that 30 others were treated for injuries after an emergency landing in Bangkok on Tuesday, following a flight from London to Singapore.
What is the Montreal Convention?
The Montreal Convention is a treaty that standardises rules for international air travel adopted by member states of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) in 1999. It aims to unify and simplify regulations regarding passenger rights and airline liability. It was designed to modernise and consolidate the Warsaw Convention system which had regulated international air travel since 1929.
Under Chapter III of the convention Liability of the Carrier and Extent of Compensation for Damage, Article 17 says: “The carrier is liable for damage sustained in case of death or bodily injury of a passenger upon condition only that the accident which caused the death or injury took place on board the aircraft or in the course of any of the operations of embarking or disembarking.”
In the same chapter, Article 21 [Compensation in Case of Death or Injury of Passengers] states:
1. For damages arising under paragraph 1 of Article 17 not exceeding 100 000 Special Drawing Rights for each passenger, the carrier shall not be able to exclude or limit its liability.
Impact Shorts
More Shorts2. The carrier shall not be liable for damages arising under paragraph 1 of Article 17 to the extent that they exceed for each passenger 100 000 Special Drawing Rights if the carrier proves that:
(a) such damage was not due to the negligence or other wrongful act or omission of the carrier or its servants or agents; or
(b) such damage was solely due to the negligence or other wrongful act or omission of a third party
In a nutshell, the Montreal Convention sets out the liability for passenger injury or death. Airlines are strictly liable for proven damages up to 100,000 Special Drawing Rights, a mix of currency values established by the International Monetary Fund. For damages exceeding this amount, the airline is liable unless it can prove that the damage was not due to its negligence or was solely due to the negligence of a third party.
What it means for Singapore Airlines and the passengers
Passengers hurt in severe turbulence on a Singapore Airlines flight may get compensation but there are various conditions to be fulfilled before an amount is fixed as per applicability.
If passengers sue, the airline can’t challenge damages up to about $175,000, said an Interaksyon report.
As per California attorney Mike Danko, as quoted by Interaksyon, if a passenger seeks damages beyond the prescribed limit, Singapore Airlines might attempt to limit its liability by demonstrating that it took all necessary precautions to prevent the turbulence. Alternatively, it may try to restrict compensation by attributing some responsibility to the passenger such as disregarding seat belt warnings. However, convincing the court won’t be a straightforward task for the carrier.
Who gets how much?
The amount of compensation often depends on the country where the lawsuit is filed and how its legal system calculates damages. The Montreal Convention outlines specific rules for deciding where a claim can be filed based on factors like the destination, the place of ticket purchase and the passenger’s residence. In this scenario, for a similar injury the compensation might vary widely depending on where it is filed.
Fortunately, in a 2019 review the ICAO updated the compensation limits for international air travel under the Montreal Convention of 1999, effective since 28 December, 2019.
Why Montreal Convention is applicable in this case
A key provision of the Montreal Convention is that it applies only to international flights involving member countries. Domestic flights within a single country are excluded unless the flight includes a layover in another country making it an international journey. Currently, 141 countries including the United Kingdom and Singapore are signatories to the Montreal Convention. However, the Montreal Convention has its limitations and is not as extensive in safeguarding passengers’ rights as other regulations, such as Europe’s EC 261 or Brazil’s ANAC 400.
For both Singapore Airlines and the affected passengers, the long-haul flight has set the stage for a lengthy and complicated legal battle.
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