Here Come the Asiana Airlines Lawsuits

A pair of passengers are launching what appears to be the first lawsuit against Asiana Airlines after the crash of its Flight 214. In a strongly worded complaint, the plaintiffs cite "extreme and catastrophic injuries and emotional distress" resulting from the flight crew's "woeful violation of numerous international and United States airline industry standards," the Wall Street Journal reports. Their lawyer calls the crew's behavior "egregiously reckless and negligent," noting that "these pilots were unable to do the most basic task—land on a runway in the middle of a clear day with no wind." Expect more lawsuits to come, the AP notes:

• A Chicago law firm has filed a petition for discovery following the crash—an effort to preserve evidence. That comes ahead of a potential suit against Boeing; the law firm, Ribbeck Law Chartered, says the plane's autothrottle may be to blame in the disaster. The firm says it may also take action against Asiana and other parts makers.
• Asiana itself had threatened to sue a San Francisco TV station for the racist fake names in a report on the crash. But KTVU-TV has apologized, and now Asiana says it won't take the station to court, the AP reports.
• In other AP news: Under a safety consulting program, South Korea asked the airline to "review its safety policies" two months before the crash, says a transport ministry official. With Asiana planning an expansion, authorities urged the company to boost the hiring of pilots, engineers, and cabin crews, the official notes.
• The flight's four pilots have been hospitalized over health concerns both physical and psychological, South Korea says; they could face more questioning tomorrow depending on their conditions.

(More Asiana Airlines stories.)