The Widow of a U.S. Navy pilot Sues

Woman Sues Raytheon Over Iraq Friendly Fire Death

BOSTON, Feb 6 (Reuters) - The widow of a U.S. Navy pilot who was shot down over Iraq in a 2003 friendly fire incident sued Raytheon Co. on Tuesday, charging that the maker of the missile that took down the plane was liable in the incident.

Akiko Ohata White, the widow of Lt. Nathan White, said in papers filed in federal court in Boston that a Raytheon Patriot Missile system used by the U.S. Army shot down the plane in April 2003 after erroneously identifying it as an enemy missile.

The lawsuit, which charges negligence and breach of warranty, says the malfunction that led to the death of White "was widespread throughout the Patriot Missile program generally, and that such malfunctions ... occurred with alarming frequency."

The suit seeks unspecified damages.

The widow, a U.S. citizen who lives in Japan, is also the mother of the dead soldier's three children.

A spokesman at the Waltham, Massachusetts-based defense contractor said the company had not seen the lawsuit and was not immediately able to comment.

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