Boeing and Honeywell International are facing a lawsuit from the families of four victims of the Air India Flight 171 crash, which killed 261 people in June after takeoff from Ahmedabad.

The complaint, filed in Delaware Superior Court, United States alleges that a defective Honeywell-manufactured fuel cutoff switch, installed by Boeing on the 787-8 Dreamliner, allowed a pilot to inadvertently shut off fuel to the engines, leading to total thrust loss.

Court documents cite a 2018 FAA report indicating the companies knew the switches could be delivered with disabled locking mechanisms, increasing the risk of “unintended” fuel cutoff.

The lawsuit claims Boeing and Honeywell failed to warn Air India or supply replacement parts.

“It is shocking that Honeywell and Boeing both knew of this danger and did absolutely nothing to prevent the inevitable catastrophe that occurred on June 12,” says Benjamin Major of The Lanier Law Firm, co-counsel for the families.

“This defect is comparable to an auto manufacturer putting an unprotected emergency brake control next to a radio volume knob in your car. And unlike a car, restarting jet engines takes minutes of time, not seconds. Once these engines shut down, that plane basically became a 250,000-pound lawn dart.”

The suit is seeking compensatory and punitive damages from Boeing and Honeywell over the wrongful deaths of four Flight 171 passengers — Kantaben Dhirubhai Paghadal, Naavya Chirag Paghadal, Kuberbhai Patel, and Babiben Patel.

Both companies have yet to comment on the litigation.