MIAMI –– A federal court declined to throw out parts of two passengers' lawsuit against a Spanish airline.
Fanny Queveda and Carlos Quevedo sued Iberia Lineas Aereas de Espana and Sociedad Anonima Operador after Fanny Queveda suffered injuries on a flight from Spain to Italy in 2015.
After boarding Flight 3252 on May 15, Fanny Queveda fell asleep almost immediately, according to court documents. However, due to turbulence, the flight diverted and the crew was advised to double check all the passengers had their seat belts buckled. Flight attendant Diego Rubio Sanz checked on Fanny Quevedo’s seatbelt, which was covered by her jacket.
The flight attendant allegedly looked under her jacket and thought the seat belt looked fastened. But it was not. Sanz realized this and attempted to secure her, but turbulence struck.
“Quebedo and Sanz were tossed around the cabin, from ceiling to floor, multiple times due to the turbulence, resulting in serious injuries to Quevedo," the court documents state.
The Quevaedos sued in March 2017.
The airline argued that Quevedo’s injuries were not caused by an accident but by her failure to fasten the seatbelt.
But in his decision, Judge Robert Scola said an accident is defined as “an unexpected or unusual event or happening that is external to the passenger.” He added turbulence counted as an accident.
The judge threw out the passenger's claims dealing with injuries caused by a tripod that fell from the overhead compartment. The fault is with a third party and not the airline, he ruled.