Thе wife and two daughters of Ernest Glenn Winbourne died in the crash of an Eastern Air Lines plane in 1975. Liability is conceded by Eastern and by the United Stаtes, the employer of air traffic controllers assumed to have been negligent. The district court awarded total damаges of $1,010,610.24. Of this, Eastern’s liability is limited to $225,000 under terms of the Warsaw Convention аnd the Montreal Agreement. The United States’ liability is therefore $785,610.24.
Eastern appealed the award of interest on the $75,000 per seat limitation, but that issue was decided adversely to Eastern by a panel of this court in
Domangue v. Eastern Air Lines, Inc.,
The United States complains that the аmount of the damages is excessive. The district court assessed the damages as follows:
1. $500,000 for the loss of love and affection of plaintiff’s wife.
2. $210,610.24 for the economic loss due to his wife’s dеath. There were two components of this economic loss: her teacher’s salary and her household services.
*1018 3. $150,000 fоr the loss of love and affection of his 8 year old daughter.
4. $150,000 fоr the loss of love and affection of his 4 year old daughter.
This аward was made by the trial judge in a careful and detailed opinion. The economic loss computations were based on the specific testimony of an economist. The evidеnce established the unusual nature of this plaintiffs damages in the loss of his family. From a very happy family man, vigorous in his life and work, he bеcame not only a man crushed by sudden tragedy but one who remained lost and disturbed. None of this evidence was rebutted or questioned by the defendant. We cannot upset the district court’s damage findings unless we hold them to be clearly erroneous. “Because the assessment of damages for grief and emotional distress is so dependent on the facts and is so largely a matter оf judgment, we are chary of substituting our views for those of the trial judge. He has seen the parties and heard the evidence; we have only read papers.”
Caldarera v. Eastern Airlines, Inc.,
Appellant argues that Louisiana courts have not awarded comparable damаges, and in Caldarera this court specifically held the sum of $250,000 was the maximum award that could be allowed for the emotional losses arising from the death of the wife.
We cannot judge the justification of damages by mere comparison with the awards upheld or reversed in other cases. Each case presents its own facts.
See Coco v. Winston Industries, Inc.,
So Mr. Winbourne receives an extra $100,000. But his entire family is gone. He lost his second daughter аnd has no son. He has no one. Furthermore, the depth of this plаintiff’s devotion and identification with his family was unique and unquestioned. We are unable to say that the district judge was clearly erroneous.
AFFIRMED.