Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752

What happened to Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752?

On January 8th, 2020, a scheduled international passenger flight from Tehran to Kyiv operated by Ukraine International Airlines (UIA) took off. Devastatingly, the Boeing 737-800 was shot down shortly after takeoff from Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport.

None of the 176 passengers and crew survived; it was the first fatal air incident for Ukraine International Airlines. The aircraft, en route to the Ukrainian capital, had numerous passengers on board that were connecting to Toronto, Ontario.

An investigation by several western intelligence agencies revealed that the aircraft was shot down by a Tor-M1 surface-to-air missile launched by Iran.

On January 11th, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced that the aircraft was shot down mistakingly, believing it to be a cruise missile. The IRGC stated that two surface-to-air missiles were fired at the Boeing aircraft.

Of the 167 passengers aboard, 138 were travelling to Canada via Ukraine. Many of the Iranian Canadians on board have been linked to Canadian universities, as students or academics travelling to Iran to visit family or others. The Ukrainian Airlines Flight 752 crash is the most significant loss of Canadian lives in aviation since 1985. Sixty-three of the passengers were Canadian nationals, with many of the others considering Canada a temporary home.

From cities including Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver, Winnipeg, Ottawa and Edmonton, the senseless loss of life from this tragedy is genuinely grieved nationally.

We Are Here To Help

It profoundly grieves us when we consider the individuals who have lost their loved ones, and that sadness hits even closer to home hearing that there are past and present Gluckstein Lawyers clients who have lost loved ones in this tragedy.

For those affected by the devastating loss of Ukrainian flight 752, we are here to assist you and your family and friends in the journey of recovery and closure that lies ahead.

If you or your loved one have been affected by this tragedy and are not being represented or have yet to speak with a lawyer, please know that you can contact us for information on the next steps and support.

What is the Ukraine Airline Flight 752 Mass Tort Action?

Ukraine Airline Flight 752 was carrying 167 passengers, of which 63 called Canada home. This was a national tragedy. For families, losing a loved one is always difficult. It can be especially difficult to process grief when death comes about so suddenly. In such circumstances, the need for civil litigation in the interest of seeking justice for surviving family members should be considered. While life is priceless, providing financial compensation is the legal system’s only means of symbolically honouring a survivor’s overall sense of loss.

A Mass Tort action would seek to assess the individual damages for those affected by the loss of their loved one(s) in this tragedy. A Mass Tort action is similar to a Class Action; however, it treats each party individually, rather than as a group. The significance of the outcome of a Mass Tort proceeding is meaningful not only for the affected plaintiffs but also for society at large.

The impact of this type of lawsuit extends far beyond the legal remedy for the representative plaintiff and can correct or modify damaging behavior that precipitated the tragedy.