Boeing Ordered to Pay $29 Million in Damages Over Ethiopian Airlines Crash

Boeing has been ordered to pay $29 million in damages to the family of an Irish UN employee who died in the Ethiopian Airlines 737 MAX 8 crash. The victim, Michael 'Mick' Ryan, was a World Food Programme employee and father of two who lost his life on March 10, 2019.

A total of 21 UN employees were among the 157 people killed in the accident, which occurred just months after the Lion Air 737 MAX 8 crash that claimed 189 lives. Boeing had acknowledged that the MCAS flight control software contributed to both crashes.

The award is part of a growing number of civil lawsuits against Boeing related to the two accidents. In November 2025, a jury awarded $28.45 million to the widower of one of the victims in the first civil trial. Another lawsuit resulted in a $49.5 million award to the family of a 24-year-old American woman.