Study On The System Of Mental Injury Compensation In Air Passenger Transportation

It was a heartbreaking day for three families when Asiana Airlines Flight 214 crashed at San Francisco airport. Relatives and friends were distraught as the mystery surrounding what happened to their loved ones onboard the missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370. Pi Yajun was anxious to receive a limb reattachment surgery by air, but Hainan Airlines refused to take her. Because the surgery was too late, Pi Yajun was forced to amputation eventually. Pets died because of the air carrier’s fault, the owner bore great pain.Body damage, property damage and psychological damage in air transportation would result emotional distress and humiliation. Can air passengers finally recover for mental injuries?To answer the question above, we must analysis whether mental damage compensation is available in air passenger transportation. If the answer is yes, then we could discuss mental injury compensation caused by bodily injury, mental injury compensation caused by property loss, and pure mental injury compensation.The master’s thesis will use the method of hermeneutics to understand the meaning of International Conventions, aviation law and civil law in China.The master’s thesis will use the method of comparative analysis to compare other countries legislations with Chinese ones.The master’s thesis will use the method of case analysis to summarize the views and reasons of why, or why not mental injury compensation is admitted.The master’s thesis will also refer to human rights protection, consumer rights protection, and the progress of medical diagnosis technology.On the basis of analyses above, we could draw the following conclusions.Mental damage compensation could apply in air passenger transportation.Air passenger could receive compensation for mental injury resulted from bodily injury.Air passenger could receive compensation only for property loss with personality symbol significance.Air passenger could not receive compensation for pure mental damage unless the damage could be confirmed by medical diagnosis or showed in the form of body damage.Currently, there are some problems remain to be solved in the system of mental injury compensation in air passenger transportation. The content of the death compensation of air crash in China is unsure. The judicial practice of compensation for mental injury in baggage loss is contradictory. Mental injury compensation is not available if the pet died during the air transportation. The standard of compensation for mental damage is unknown. There is still a long way to go for the system of mental injury compensation in China concerning air passenger transportation. After realize the lacuna of legislation and the contradiction of judicial practice, we need analyze international convention and domestic law and use some of foreign thinking and practices for reference so that we could solve the existing problems and improve the system of mental injury compensation.It is the best of times, human right protection and consumer rights has risen to a new level. It is the worst of times, carriers often violate legitimate rights and interests of passengers by using their advantage position. It is the epoch of belief, sincere faith and consciously abide by the law ensure the authority of the law. It is the epoch of incredulity, we will have to doubt the lack of legal system when air passengers cannot get full protection. It is the season of light, we will benefit from the further improvement of the mental injury compensation system. It is the season of darkness, we should make great efforts to fill in the “black hole” of aviation safety and the protection of air passengers’ rights and interests.