01:55 pm, Tuesday 7 February, 2012

A pilot files charges against a budget airline after allegedly enduring back injuries from lifting an 18kg flight bag containing aviation charts and manuals instead of having them provided digitally on an iPad.

The 57-year-old pilot said that he would not have suffered from back injuries had the airline made the information available through an iPad instead of requiring pilots to carry the information. He claimed he injured his back lifting the heavy flight bag after catching the work shuttle bus on 29 December 2009.

In documents lodged in the Queensland Supreme Court, the complainant claimed that the airline company exposed him to a risk of injury which could have been avoided if reasonable care was exercised.

“(The airline company) failed to have in place a system of work whereby charts and rules could have been left on board its aircraft or kept electronically on an iPad.”

According to news sources, the first officer was facing a future financial loss of $817,546, medical expenses of $112,182 and special damages of $76,080. He is also claiming $65,000 in general damages.

The pilot had a surgery in June 2010 and suffered from a “major depressive disorder” because of his injuries.

The airline company has not yet responded formally to the lawsuit filed last month. A spokesman for the budget airline said they were yet to receive notification of the legal action.

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