LaMotta 'rages' over death of son in Swissair crash

OTTAWA -- A former boxing champion whose son was killed in the crash of Swissair flight 111 is the first relative to file charges against the airline and the plane's manufacturer, Boeing, Canadian television reports said yesterday.

Jake LaMotta filed the charges in a Brooklyn court, demanding $50 million for the death of his son, Joseph LaMotta, 49, on the grounds that both the airline and the manufacturer knew about a possible electrical fault present in the MD-11 aircraft.

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration in 1996 warned airlines about wiring in the plane that could chafe and possibly cause fire or damage flight control cables.

U.S. airlines were required by the FAA to modify MD-11s - at a cost of about $1600 each - to protect the wires from chafing. Foreign carriers were not affected by the FAA directive.

Jake LaMotta was a middle-weight boxer who retired in 1954 with a record that included 30 knockouts.