London-based Global Aerospace Underwriting is to lead the insurance cover for the Helios Airways Boeing 737-300 that crashed near Athens on Sunday.
The jet was flying from Larnaca, Cyprus, to Prague, Czech Republic, when it crashed in to a mountainside north of Athens killing all 115 passengers and six crew.
The cause of the crash is so far unknown but investigators are considering the possibility that there was a sudden loss of cabin pressure on the aircraft, reports have said.
Global Aerospace Underwriting was the lead on a joint hull and liability policy that was placed by Aon. The value of the hull was about $30m and the liability limit is about $600m, according to sources.
Yesterday, police raided the Larnaca offices of Helios Airways in a search for documents that would establish whether charges of criminal negligence could be brought against the airline.
Civil aviation sources in Cyprus said the Boeing 737-300 had a history of problems but Andreas Drakos, executive chairman of Helios, said the aircraft had been certified by Boeing as airworthy and had been fully checked before leaving Larnaca.
The airline said it would pay initial compensation of about €19,000 (£12,933) per passenger pending further compensation.
