Judge Refuses to Limit Flight 800 Damages

A judge in New York said the TWA Flight 800 explosion did not occur on the “high seas,” a ruling that could make victims eligible for additional money in their lawsuit against the airline and the aircraft manufacturers. Victims’ families say Boeing Co., TWA and Hydoaire Inc. were negligent in the construction and operation of the Boeing 747 that exploded more than three nautical miles off the shore from New York after taking off for Paris in July 1996. The families of the 230 people who died are seeking millions of dollars. The defendants had asked U.S. District Judge Robert W. Sweet to limit damages to those allowed by the Death on the High Seas Act, which excludes damages for areas such as emotional stress and suffering.