Boeing 737 MAX

Families 'cheated of Boeing crash compensation'

Lawyers told the BBC that many families were persuaded to sign forms preventing them from taking legal action.

BBC Panorama has discovered that other relatives signed similar agreements after two other crashes, stopping them from suing Boeing in the US courts.

Boeing has declined to comment on the agreements.

All 189 passengers and crew died when the Boeing 737 Max crashed into the sea just 13 minutes after taking off from the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, on 29 October 2018.

Within weeks, relatives were offered compensation by insurance lawyers.

Boeing MAX return to Pacific delayed further

Both Fiji Airways and Samoa Airways hired versions of the Boeing 737 MAX, which were grounded in March after two fatal crashes.

The plane's manufacturer, Boeing, this month acknowledged a new software issue with the MAX, but would not say how or if it would affect the plane.

Samoa Airways said it was monitoring developments with the MAX, and that it was finalising options to replace the 737-800 it had leased.

Fiji Airways said it had been in regular contact with Boeing and that it had confidence in the manufacturer to fix the problems.