Qantas Compensates 144 Passengers of Perth-Bound Flight with $400,000 each

Qantas compensated passengers of its Perth-bound plane from Singapore up to $400,000 each. The 144 travelers were hurt when the Airbus A4330 jet they were riding in October 2008 nosedived twice.

The 16 passengers who suffered the most, specifically those who were tossed around the cabin, would likely receive higher compensation, the West Australian reports. The settlement came just as the 16 passengers were about to file a lawsuit against Northrop Grumann, the maker of the aircraft part that was the cause of the aviation accident.

According to the probe by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau, one of the jet's three air data inertial reference units was the cause of the mishap when it provided inaccurate altitude data. The inaccurate information is only the third on record of failure by the air data inertial reference units over 128 million hours of unit operation.

Since the accident, Northrop Grumman modified the technology.

The plane had 303 passengers and 12 crew members aboard and was 37,000 feet west of Exmouth when the unit provided inaccurate data. The jet plunged initially at 690 feet which lasted for 23 seconds and at 400 feet the second time.

The accident raised questions about the limits of automation on aircraft operation.