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STOCKHOLM (AP) — Experts say Lufthansa could be looking at "unlimited" compensation claims for the crash that killed 150 people in the French Alps. And they say it would be difficult -- and even counter-productive -- for the German airline to try to avoid liability.
To do so, an airline would have to prove that the crash wasn't due to "negligence or other wrongful act" by its employees. In this case, prosecutors say the co-pilot locked himself in the cockpit and deliberately crashed the plane on a French mountain.
Under an international treaty, airlines have to compensate relative of victims for proven damages, up to a limit currently set at $157,000. But higher compensation is possible if the airline is held liable.
Damages are typically much lower in Europe than they are in the United States. But the families of the three American victims could sue in U.S. courts.
Several analysts say Lufthansa will probably reach settlements with relatives of victims to avoid going to court.
The airline's CEO has already said it would honor "international arrangements regulating liability." He said it had already offered immediate financial aid to anyone needing it.
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