Supreme Court Takes Up Air India Express Compensation Case, Questions Airline’s Compliance with Montreal Convention
Last Updated on October 19, 2023 by News Desk
The Supreme Court has issued notice on special leave petitions filed by passengers seeking compensation for their losses in the Air India Express Flight IX-1344 crash at Karipur International Airport in 2020. The court tagged the case along with civil appeals pending on the same issue arising from the 2010 Mangalore air crash.
The petitioners claim that Air India Express offered only nominal compensation to the affected parties through negotiating agencies, which they accepted as an interim settlement against the carrier’s “second-tier liability” for damages incurred. They expected their claims under the “first-tier liability” would be addressed separately.
The petitioners, who were injured in an air crash, have filed a petition with the Supreme Court. They argue that the Division Bench failed to understand the Third Schedule of the Act, which incorporates the Montreal Convention of 1999. This international convention establishes a two-tier compensation system for air carrier accident victims, with the first-tier compensation being non-negotiable.
In support of their claim, the petitioners cited the Supreme Court’s precedent in K.S. Puttaswami v. Union of India (2017) 10 SCC 1 and claimed that an international agreement guarantees the right to at least one lakh Special Drawing Rights (SDR).
They also argue that the Third Schedule was incorporated into the Carriage by Air Act of 1972 as part of India’s international obligations as a member of the International Civil Aviation Organisation and a signatory to the Montreal Convention of 1999.
