Under Art 18(1) of the Montreal Convention, the 'event' causing cargo damage need not be something unusual or unexpected — it is sufficient to identify an event or happening which caused the damage and which took place during the carriage by air. This distinguishes Art 18(1) from Art 17(1), where the 'accident' inquiry requires something unusual or unexpected. 'Defective packing' under Art 18(2)(b) refers to the way cargo is covered, wrapped or contained for protection, and does not include the stowage of cargo within the aircraft. Where a shipper has knowledge of risks associated with particular cargo placement and fails to communicate loading requirements to the carrier, the shipper will bear the primary share of responsibility under Art 20.
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