1 Institute of Criminal Sciences and Justice (Bordeaux, France)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.29202/asl/14/2
Received: 07 September 2024 / Accepted: 28 September 2024 / Published: 30 December 2024
View Full-Text Review Reports Cite This Paper
Abstract
The air disaster of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, which disappeared on March 8, 2014, remains an enigma. The reasons for the deaths of the passengers and crew remain unexplained even after ten years of fruitless searches. Although the Malaysian government may relaunch the search for the missing plane this year, nothing can erase the moral trauma suffered by the indirect victims. The moral and financial repercussions on the indirect victims of passengers who died in an unexplained air disaster manifest as a feeling of not being able to grieve due to the lack of obvious causes of the accident. While international legal texts provide frameworks for compensating the damage suffered, national courts apply compensation scales that are inequitable among indirect victims. To address current inequities, recognizing the prejudice of waiting and worry could alleviate the suffering endured by indirect victims.
Keywords: unexplained air disaster, carrier liability, indirect victims, loss, loss of expectation and worry, compensation.
References
Cour de Cassation (1930) Chambre réunie, 13 fév. 1930, Jeand’heur, DP. 1930. 1. 57, rapp. LE MARC’HADOUR, concl. MATTER, note RIPERT. G; S. 1930. 1. 121, note ESMEIN. P ; GAJC, t. 2, 12th éd., 2008, Dalloz, n° 199. Avaible online: https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/juri/id/JURITEXT000006952821/.
Cour de cassation Chambre Civile 1 (1979) 1re, 2 Mai 1979, pourvoi n° 78-10719, RFD aérien 1979.309. Available online: https://juricaf.org/arret/FRANCE-COURDECASSATION-19790502-7810719.
Cour de cassation Chambre Civile 1 (1980) 1ère, 1 fév. 1980, pourvoi n° 78-14538, Bull. civ. des arrêts Cour de cassation Civ.1ère n°47. Available online: https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/juri/id/JURITEXT000007005036
Cour de cassation Chambre civile 1 (1986) 1re, 15 avr. 1986, pourvoi n° 84-15.810., RFD aérien 1986.241, Gazette du Palais 1986.2. panor. 144; CA Paris. Available online: https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/juri/id/JURITEXT000007016638
Cour de Cassation Chambre civile 1 (1988) No 28 1989, D. RCA 1990 somm. 273. REMOND-GOUILLOUD. Chr.-M.
Cour de cassation Chambre civile 1 (2006) 1ère, 11 Juil. 1986, pourvoi n°. 04-18.644 P, D. 2006. 2055, obs. DELPECH. X; RTD com. 2006. 703, obs. DELEBECQUE. P; JCP 2006. Actu. 373; Nov. 12th, 2009, N°. 08-15.269, Rev. crit. DIP 2010. 372, note H. MUIR WATT; RTD com. 2010. 456, obs. DELEBECQUE. P; J. Avaible online: https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/juri/id/JURITEXT000007053692
Cour de Cassation Chambre civile 1 (2015) Rio-Paris Case, D. 2015. Actu. 622, obs. DELPECH. X.
Cour de cassation, Chambre civile 1 (2019), 1ère, 26 juin 2019, pourvoi n° 18-12.541, Dalloz actualité, Sept. 26th 2019, obs. DELPECH. X. Avaible online: https://www.dalloz.fr/documentation/Document?id=CASS_LIEUVIDE_2019-06-26_1812541&FromId=RECUEIL_CHRON_2020_1149#texte-integral
Cour de cassation Chambre civile 1 (2023), 1ère, 1er Mars 2023, pourvoi n°. 21-22.015: “9. Having noted that Nigerian law (…) did not provide for compensation for moral prejudice, the Court of Appeal (…) legally justified its decision to award sums in compensation for material prejudice”. Avaible online: https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/juri/id/JURITEXT000047268963
Bloch, C., & Le Tourneau, P. (2023a) Contrats relatifs aux transports et aux voyages. Dalloz action, Droit de la responsabilité et contrats (Chap. n° 3314, n° 3314. 213).
Bloch, C., & Le Tourneau, P. (2023b) Responsabilité du fait des aéronefs. Dalloz Action, Droit de la responsabilité civile et contrats (Chap. n° 6221, n° 6221.21).
Larribau-Terneyre, Virginie, and Yvaine Buffelan-Lanore (2020) Droit civil, Les obligations 2020-20221 (17th ed.). Sirey.
Cahier, B. (2009) Le gouvernement du ciel: prevent et surmonter la catastrophe aérienne. Les Cahiers du Portique, 22, p. 13.
Casson, P. (2017) Dommages et interests. Répertoire civil, p. 86.
Civil (1957) Bull. civ. II, n° 89. – Nov. 14, 1958, JCP 1959. II. 10394, note RODIERE. R.
Commercial (2012) n° 11-21.362 P: D. 2012. 2866, note TOSI. J.-P; ibid. Act. 2384, obs. DELPECH. X; JCP E 2012, n° 1662; RD Transp. 2012, n° 54, note DELEBECQUE. P.
Commercial (1993) BTL 1993.312. Bobigny.
Council Regulation No 2. (1997) OJEC, L 285, Oct. 17, 1997.
Delpech, X. (2021) Catastrophe aérienne: règles de compétence. Dalloz Actualité.
Division, Q.B. (1956) Preston v/ Hunting Air Transport, W1956.
ECHR (2006) Scordino v/ Italy, req. n° 536813/97. 213. Available online: https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/eng#{%22itemid%22:[%22002-3358%22]}
ECHR (2009) Zavoloka v/ Latvia, req. n° 58447/00, 40. Available online: https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/app/conversion/pdf/?library=ECHR&id=002-1417&filename=002-1417.pdf&TID=ihgdqbxnf
ECHR (2004) Cataldo v/ Italy, req. n°, 45656/99. Available online: https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/eng#{%22itemid%22:[%22001-45065%22]}.
ECJ (1996) Brasserie du pêcheur and Factortame III, §82. Available online: https://www.cvce.eu/obj/arret_de_la_cour_de_justice_brasserie_du_pecheur_et_factortame_affaires_jointes_c_46_93_et_c_48_93_5_mars_1996-fr-bc577e46-8c3d-43c7-9f35-3504ca31671f.html
Grynbaum, L. (2011) Responsabilité du fait des choses inanimées. Répertoire civil, p. 17.
Judicial Tribunal (1997) September 3rd. RFD aerial RCA 1998.146.
Le Tourneau, P. (2022). Dépassement de la theory du risque. Dalloz Action, Droit de la responsabilité civile (Chap. 0124, 2022, n° 0124.12.).
Mercadal, B. (2000). Transports aériens. Répertoire Commercial, p. 220.
Mixed court (2022, March 25th). No. 20-17.072, Dalloz actualité, April 5, 2022, obs. CAYOL. A; D. 2022. 774, note PORCHY-SIMON. S; ibid. 1934, obs. BACACHE.M, GUEGAN. A and PORCHY-SIMON. S; ibid. 2023. 34, obs. BROWN. P, GOUT. O and QUEZEL-AMBRUNAZ.
Convention for the Unification of Certain Rules for International Carriage by Air (the Montreal Convention) (1999) Art. 21.2. Official Journal L 194 , 18/07/2001 P. 0039 – 0049.
MH370: L’avion disparu [Motion Picture] (2023). Netflix (Director).
MH370: La vérité disparue [Motion Picture] (2024) France.
OACI (2010) Annexe 13, Enquêtes sur les accidents et incidents d’aviation. The Chicago Convention, 10th, p.1-1.
Regulation No 8. (2002) OJEC, L 140/2, May 30th, 2002.
Schubert, F. (2018) Droit aérien. SCHULTHESS.
Steinle-Feuebach, M.-F. (2000) Victims de violences et d’accidents collectifs. Exceptional situations, exceptional prejudices: reflections and interrogations. Médecine et Droit (45), p. 1.
Supreme Court of California (1985) Air France v. Hermien Saks, Air and Space Law 1985.173, Rev. dr. uniform RCA 1986.542.
Van De Winkel, A. (2015) La disparition du vol MH370 : plot, dissimulation, bluff et fiction. Diogène PUF(249-250), pp. 203-216.
Viney, G., & Jourdain, P. (2006) Les conditions de la responsabilité (3rd ed.). (LDGJ, Ed.)