Passengers sue Boeing over fiery September incident at McCarran

Sixty-five passengers on a British Airways Las Vegas-to-London flight evacuated after an aborted takeoff and fire in September have filed a lawsuit in Chicago against the manufacturers of the Boeing 777 jet and its engines.

Nearly half the passengers on British Airways Flight 2276, mostly from Great Britain, are plaintiffs in the case against Chicago-based Boeing Co., which manufactured the twin-engine jet, and GE Aviation Systems LLC, which supplied the engines. Five are residents of the United States.

While the lawsuit seeks damages "for an amount in excess of the minimum jurisdictional amount of this court," British media have reported the claim to be for more than $100 million.

According to the lawsuit, the evacuated passengers "suffered both physical and psychological injuries in the incident and are seeking damages for pain, suffering, emotional stress as well as financial losses."

The complaint was filed in Cook County Circuit Court in Chicago by Stewarts Law in London and the Wisner Law Firm of Geneva, Ill.

It stems from a near catastrophe at McCarran International Airport on the afternoon of Sept. 8.

The British Airways jet was on its takeoff run on a flight to London's Gatwick International Airport just after 4 p.m., when the plane's left engine failed after the plane had reached 100 mph.

Flames erupted from the damaged engine and began engulfing the fuselage and as Clark County Fire Department crews reached the jet, the captain ordered the plane to be evacuated.

Fourteen passengers were slightly injured when they slid down emergency evacuation chutes.

The preliminary findings of the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration indicated the GE-90 engine had an uncontained failure with the high-pressure compressor section of the engine. Shrapnel breached the engine cowling, damaging the fuselage and starting the fire.

The agencies have yet to file a final report. The aircraft continues to be parked east of Terminal 3, and McCarran is charging British Airways rent of $375 a day for the space.

"Our clients are not critical of (British Airways) and feel that the pilots and cabin crew performed heroically in guiding the aircraft to an emergency stop and then evacuating all occupants away from the burning aircraft in difficult circumstances," said James Healy-Pratt, a partner of Stewarts Law and the firm's head of aviation and travel.

"However, the interim report from the NTSB clearly accepts that there was uncontained failure within the high-pressure compressor section of the engine, which caused serious damage to the British Airways Boeing 777 at a critical time during its takeoff roll," Healy-Pratt said.

"Given the justified safety concerns of the FAA back in 2011 over this component of the GE-90 engine, our clients deserve the real truth of how this failure happened," he said.

Dominic Worthington, a London resident, said he still suffers sleepless nights, flashbacks and stress.

"It's difficult to get over something like this, you just don't expect it," Worthington said in a statement issued by the British law firm.

"Despite my struggle to get over the incident, I know we are all very lucky not to have been more seriously injured," he said.

The five American passengers filing the lawsuit include Las Vegas resident Sally Dewhurst. Other plaintiffs are from Northern Ireland, Ireland and Germany.

Contact reporter Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Find him on Twitter: @RickVelotta