Ahmedabad plane crash: Working to gather more information, says Boeing

Boeing says it is gathering details after an Air India Dreamliner carrying 242 people crashed near Ahmedabad shortly after take-off en route to London Gatwick

Aircraft manufacturer Boeing stated on Thursday that it is ‘aware of initial reports and is working to gather more information’ after an Air India-operated Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner crashed shortly after take-off from Ahmedabad.  Boeing stated that it is in contact with Air India following the incident involving the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft.  The London-bound Air India flight AI-171 was carrying 242 individuals, including 230 passengers and 12 crew members, when it went down near a residential area shortly after departing from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport on 12 June. 

The flight was en route to Gatwick Airport in the United Kingdom.

 

 

According to Air India, the passenger manifest included 169 Indian nationals, 53 British nationals, seven Portuguese nationals and one Canadian.

 

Emergency services transported passengers to nearby hospitals, and rescue operations began immediately.

 

The incident occurred just days before the Paris Air Show, an aviation industry event where Boeing and Airbus are scheduled to present their aircraft and compete for orders.

 

The crash adds to Boeing’s ongoing safety and operational challenges. The company has faced scrutiny since the 2018 and 2019 crashes involving the 737 Max 8 model: Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, which killed 189 and 157 people respectively. 

 

Following the Air India crash, shares of Boeing Co fell by around 5% on the US stock market.

Boeing 787 Dreamliner

The Boeing 787 Dreamliner is a long-haul, wide-body, twin-engine aircraft developed by Boeing Commercial Airplanes and introduced in 2011. It was designed to enhance fuel efficiency and reduce operating costs.

 

More than half of the 787’s airframe by weight is built from carbon-fibre-reinforced polymer, which contributes to lower fuel consumption. The aircraft is equipped with either Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 or GE GEnx engines, offering approximately 20 per cent improved fuel efficiency compared to the Boeing 767.

 

The 787 programme has encountered several technical and regulatory issues. In 2013, the FAA grounded the global 787 fleet due to lithium-ion battery fires. From 2019, the programme faced quality control concerns, including fuselage join gaps, shimming issues and foreign object debris inside aircraft. Between January 2021 and August 2022, Boeing suspended most 787 deliveries amid regulatory reviews and internal audits.