Originally published at: Boeing plane tire explodes in Atlanta, instantly killing 2 Delta workers and seriously injuring a 3rd - Boing Boing
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Ever seen an 18-wheeler tire explode? 757 tires run at about twice the pressure of commercial truck tires, and are larger. I’m hazy on the science, but wouldn’t that carry at least 4 times the explosive force?
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“Okay, Clancy, remember to turn sideways–and become pointier as you get closer.”
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Damn, I’m pretty sure that it would be physically impossible to keep your whole body inside that narrow green wedge when approaching a tire.
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Is there any evidence that the airplane manufacturer is in any way relevant here? I know Boeing is a dumpster fire, but last I checked, they don’t make tires.
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[pedant]
Nor do they make Airbuses
[/pedant]
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Shit… an old school mate of my daughter’s works there… 
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At least 90% of the “Boeing plane does X” stories at this point have nothing to do with Boeing itself or the quality of its planes. Most of them are really about the airlines and their maintenance (or lack thereof) of their planes which coincidentally happen to have been made by Boeing.
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Indeed…that’s like saying Ford is responsible every time a Bridgestone tire blows while driving down the highway. The level of Boeing-bashing is getting really ridiculous.
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Indeed. BTW: This is the third BoingBoing post (that I can think of) whose headline reports an incident with a Boeing airliner but whose picture is a photo of an Airbus. See also this one and this one.
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“The Delta family is heartbroken at the loss of two team members…”
They weren’t team members, they were employees. The day you stop paying them is the day they walk out, just like how you will fire them at the drop of a hat if it benefits your bottom line. Stop pretending that “We’re just one big family”.
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I hate the “we’re all family” in business tropes as well, but I think the word “team” is appropriate here. They worked together on a team. It acknowledges connection but doesn’t force familiarity. Moreover, it accepts that Delta has a responsibility to these people. It remains to be seen if they live up to that…
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Yes. US Tort law. It’s a Boeing plane. Boeing might not be negligent here, but they also might be. It depends on a lot of factors, and would be one of those things worked out in a lawsuit, should there be one.
They can be. If that Bridgestone tire is one installed by Ford at the factory, then they absolutely have liability for any failure. That would be a product liability case, and that is strict liability. If it’s the factory original tire, Ford is liable, whether they were negligent or not.
So, in this case, if we imagine there’s going to be a wrongful death lawsuit at some point, who can the families of the Delta workers sue? They can sue Delta, the third party maintenance company, if there is one involved here, the manufacturer of the tire, and Boeing. All of those entities may have some liability. It just depends on a whole load of facts we don’t know. I don’t think strict product liability would apply here, except to the tire manufacturer, because I’m assuming that’s not the factory original tire. But that doesn’t mean Boeing is off the hook. Do they provide a list of acceptable tires for use on their aircraft? Do they have maintenance specs for those tires? Were those maintenance specs proper? There’s all kinds of things that could make Boeing liable here. They also might not be liable in this case, but if a lawsuit is filed, they’re going to have to show that they’re not liable. If they’re not, and they have undisputed evidence of that, then they can get the lawsuit against them dismissed. But that involves lawyers and legal filings, and they’ll probably decide that it’s cheaper to just settle. Same for all the other potential parties.
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This. Or if it is the manufacturer specified tire operating under manufacturer specified load and maintenance regimes. It could be a fault in the tire or it could also be a fault of the manufacturer specification.
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