A jury in a Chicago federal civil court on Wednesday night awarded Boeing $49.5 million in compensation to the family of a 24-year-old American woman killed in the 2019 Ethiopian Airlines 737 MAX 8 crash that killed 157 people.

The jury, which deliberated for about two hours, decided "that the total damages suffered by the plaintiff amounted to $49.5 million," according to a document published by the court.

"We are deeply sorry for all those who lost loved ones on Lion Air flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines flight 302," Boeing said in a statement to AFP.

"Although we have reached amicable agreements in almost all of the complaints, the families are fully entitled to take their claims to court, and we respect their right to do so," the group added.

When contacted by AFP, the plaintiffs and their lawyers did not immediately respond.

The two accidents resulted in dozens of civil lawsuits filed by relatives of the victims. Almost all of them were settled out of court.

But, in the case of Samya Stumo, her parents and her two brothers were unable to reach an agreement with Boeing before the trial, which opened on May 4 with jury selection.

The debates really began two days later with opening remarks from Shanin Specter, the family's lawyer, and Dan Webb, Boeing's lawyer.

"Boeing was negligent. The Boeing plane was not safe. Boeing caused this crash and these deaths," Mr. Specter said.

"This crash was avoidable," he lamented, while Michael Stumo and Nadia Milleron, Samya's parents, as well as her brothers, Adnaan and Tor, were in the front row of the audience.

It was while carrying out her first mission for "her dream job" with the NGO ThinkWell, specializing in public health, that she boarded flight ET302 on March 10, 2019, which crashed shortly after takeoff from Addis Ababa.

- "for the pain inflicted" -

The American manufacturer admitted as early as 2019 that anti-stall software had contributed to this accident, as well as to that of a 737 MAX 8 of the Indonesian company Lion Air on October 29, 2018. These accidents resulted in a total of 346 deaths.

The aircraft manufacturer's lawyer expressed his regrets on May 6 and stated that he "agreed with Mr. Specter" that the Stumo family should receive "substantial financial compensation for the pain inflicted."

"Our only disagreement concerns the exact amount of this compensation," he noted.

The first-ever civil trial against Boeing related to the two accidents took place in November 2025. After two hours of deliberation, the jury awarded $28.45 million in compensation to the widower of one of the victims.

A second trial, in January, was halted after an out-of-court settlement on the evening of the second day.

The next trial is scheduled for August 3, concerning the death of Michael Ryan, an Irish engineer with the UN World Food Programme (WFP).

Many victims of the Ethiopian Airlines flight were on their way to the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) in Nairobi.

Regarding the Lion Air crash, all complaints have resulted in settlements between the parties. The latest agreement, concerning the only foreigner on the flight, a 26-year-old Italian man, was reached at the end of February.

After many twists and turns since 2021, a Texas judge ordered on November 6, 2025 the dismissal of criminal charges against Boeing for the two accidents.

Meanwhile, a trial between the Polish airline LOT and Boeing began Monday in a federal civil court in Seattle (northwest). Unless an out-of-court settlement is reached, it is expected to last until around May 26.

The American manufacturer is being sued for "at least $250 million" for losses related to the grounding of the 737 MAX after the two crashes, according to the complaint seen by AFP.

The airline believes that Boeing should compensate it for the financial losses it suffered due to the grounding of all its 737 MAX aircraft worldwide for twenty months.

LOT was the first airline to sue the American aircraft manufacturer and, at this stage, the only one to go to trial.

AFP