The airline permitted Irving to visit John F. Kennedy Airport to search through 16 acres (not 60, as stated in a news article) of unclaimed luggage. He was able to locate one trunk, but the contents had become damaged and useless because of exposure to the weather. Irving filed a successful $15,000 (not $35,000, as stated in a press article) lawsuit to recoup expenses accrued on his return to India to redo his entire research and photography.
The airline permitted Irving to search 16 acres (not the 60 mentioned in a news article) of unclaimed luggage at John F. Kennedy Airport. He found one trunk, but its contents were damaged by weather exposure and unusable. Irving successfully sued for $15,000 to recoup expenses related to redoing his research and photography when he returned to India.