36Moreover, interpreting the concept of ‘accident’ provided for in Article 17(1) of the Montreal Convention as meaning that the assessment of the unforeseen nature of the event in question depends solely on the relevant passenger’s perception of that event could extend that concept in an unreasonable manner to the detriment of air carriers. While it is true that, according to the third paragraph of the preamble to the Montreal Convention, the States Parties thereto, recognising ‘the importance of ensuring protection of the interests of consumers in international carriage by air and the need for equitable compensation based on the principle of restitution’, decided to lay down a system of strict liability for air carriers, a system of that kind implies, however, as is apparent from the fifth paragraph of that preamble, that an ‘equitable balance of interests’ be maintained, in particular the interests of air carriers and of passengers (see, to that effect, judgment of 19 December 2019, Niki Luftfahrt, C‑532/18, EU:C:2019:1127, paragraph 36 and the case-law cited).
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