The parents of Samya Stumo, 24, who was killed in the March 10 crash of a Boeing Max8 plane want families to be a part of the decision-making process in an effort to make planes safer. Nadia Milleron and Michael Stumo, parents of Samya, one of 157 victims aboard the Ethiopian Airlines plane, will be present in the hearing room Wednesday and will be available to speak to the press about their concerns on airline safety in the wake of the latest crash.
Lawyers representing the Stumo family submitted the parents’ testimony into the official hearing record, assisted by members on the Aviation Subcommittee of the U.S. House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. The hearing, entitled “Status of the Boeing 737 MAX” begins at 10 a.m. Wednesday in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill.
Milleron authored an article on CNN’s website today (Tuesday, May 14, 2019) about Samya’s needless death and concerns about keeping unsafe planes, like the Boeing 737 Max, grounded. The full article can be found here. She is encouraging the public to write the Federal Aviation Administration with comments by emailing the FAA at: 9-AVS-AFS-100@faa.gov
“What concerns the victims’ families is Boeing’s haste to get the Max flying again,” said Robert A. Clifford, founder and senior partner of Clifford Law Offices in Chicago, one of the firms representing the Stumo family and dozens of other victims’ families. “The Max aircraft should not be allowed in the skies again until all relevant investigations have been completed, including any criminal investigations, the independent study ordered by Transportation Secretary Chao and the investigation being conducted by the National Transportation Safety Board. Congress should consider calling for an independent blue ribbon committee of experts to examine the 737 Max aircraft before it is certified to fly as well as to give the victims’ families greater input in the process, including that of attempting to retrieve any remains of their loved ones.”
None of the remains of any of those killed in the crash, including Samya, grand-niece of political activist Ralph Nader, have been returned, though some fragments of victims’ bodies were recovered. “It is another tragedy that more than two months have gone by and none of the families have heard a single word about the possibility of any victims’ remains that they could bury,” Clifford said.
Frank Pitre, partner at Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy, also representing the victims in co-counseling with Clifford Law Offices, added, “It is essential that those who lost loved ones have a voice in the course of these hearings and especially in FAA’s decision making. There is always concern that Boeing’s profit desires will overshadow the national interest in flyer safety. Samya’s parents intend to make Congress acutely aware of the multiple levels of impact in allowing an unsafe plane to fly.”
For further information or to speak to Nadia Milleron or Michael Stumo, please contact Pamela Sakowicz Menaker at 847-721-0909 (cell) at Clifford Law Offices or Alison Cordova at 425-772-7404 (cell) at Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy or Lee Houskeeper at 415-654-9141 (cell).