2 passengers sue United Airlines over A320 runway skid in Chicago caused by crossed wiring

2 sue United in Seattle over Chicago runway skid

SEATTLE — Two passengers on a United Airlines A320 that skidded off a runway in Chicago, likely because of crossed wiring in the main landing gear, are suing the airline and Airbus SAS, the manufacturer.

The lawsuits filed by Jamie Scatena and Marc Shannon involve one of three United A320s that were found to have crossed wiring, drawing civil action from the Federal Aviation Administration.

Scatena and Shannon are seeking unspecified damages for pain, suffering, lost pay, medical expenses and other losses in the lawsuits, which were filed in King County Superior Court on Sept. 1 and moved at the request of United to U.S. District Court on Oct. 9.

Both were on a United A320 that veered into some runway lights after a hard landing at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago on the night of Oct. 9, 2007.

The plane “violently contacted the runway … reportedly blew out one main landing tire, experienced at least two brake failures, struck at least one runway marker, struck multiple runway lights and damaged both engine nacelles,” according to the lawsuit. A nacelle is a special streamlined compartment

“The injuries they sustained were not life-threatening but were serious,” Jeffrey C. Jones, a lawyer for Scatena and Shannon, said Tuesday. He would not elaborate on the nature of the injuries.

There was no response to the lawsuit from United in the court file. Jones said the lawsuit had not yet been served on Airbus, which is based in France.

Another United A320 skidded into three feet of snow at Jackson Hole, Wyo., on Feb. 25, 2008. No one was seriously injured.

United subsequently confirmed that both planes — and a third that was not involved in any mishap — had crossed wiring in the main landing gear. Investigators believe the foul-up caused the wheels to lock on both planes that went off the runways.

In August 2008 the FAA proposed an $18,000 penalty against United for two maintenance violations that the agency said preceded the second runway skid. Mike Fergus, an FAA spokesman in Renton, said Wednesday he could not determine how the penalty proposal had been resolved.

Fergus also was unable to determine the outcome of an investigation into the Chicago skid.