Air India Boeing 787 crash spurs speculation, calls for patience

Lauren Rosenblatt, Alex Halverson and Paige Cornwell, The Seattle Times on Jun 13, 2025

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PARIS — One day after the Air India crash, which killed at least 241 people Thursday, the airline on Friday was ordered to inspect its fleet of 787 Dreamliners as Boeing and its suppliers pulled back from public events ahead of the Paris Air Show.

It could take months to fully understand what went wrong in the crash, the first involving a Dreamliner. Officials from India continued the investigation Friday as crash investigators from United States and the United Kingdom, where the Air India plane was headed, rushed to Ahmedabad.

Investigators stressed patience and cautioned against speculation about the cause of the crash, as executives on different continents grappled with the tragedy and potential fallout.

India’s aviation watchdog ordered Air India to conduct additional maintenance checks on its Boeing 787-8 and 787-9 Dreamliner planes with General Electric’s GEnx engines. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation, a regulator similar to the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, said it had ordered the additional inspections “as a preventive measure.”

The DGCA ordered Air India to inspect the jets’ fuel parameter monitoring, cabin air compressor and electronic engine control, among other systems.

The crash occurred days before the Paris Air show, an industry trade event that kicks off Monday in France.

Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg and head of commercial airplanes Stephanie Pope will not attend; the executives canceled their plans after the crash. General Electric, maker of the engine on the Air India 787, postponed its investor day set to take place at the air show.

Boeing and GE said Thursday they are prepared to support Air India and assist in the investigation.

“Our deepest condolences go out to the loved ones of the passengers and crew on board Air India Flight 171, as well as everyone affected in Ahmedabad,” Ortberg said in a statement.

Boeing rival Airbus said that the Air India crash is an “immediate reminder of what can go wrong.”

Airbus executives view the fatal Air India crash as a lesson for the entire industry — no matter what ultimately caused the crash.

“We stand to learn from whatever went wrong,” Airbus CEO of Commercial Airplanes Christian Scherer told reporters at a briefing ahead of the Paris Air Show. Airbus has struck a similar tone in the past, including at last year’s air show in Farnborough, London, held months after a panel flew off an Alaska Airlines MAX in January 2024.

The crash, commercial aviation’s deadliest in a decade, is sure to dominate discussions at this year’s Paris Air Show, a gathering of airplane manufacturers, suppliers, vendors and airlines. The annual show alternates locations each year between the suburbs of London and Paris.

Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury opened his remarks to reporters by addressing the tragedy.

“We work hard, all, as a community for this not to happen,” Faury said. “Tough times for all of them ahead. Safety is our license to operate, top priority for all of us in the industry.”

Scherer emphasized that Airbus does not consider a Boeing crash as a competitive advantage. It’s too soon to know what caused the crash, but the incident could spook Boeing customers and Wall Street.

“Every incident in this industry is an immediate reminder of things that can go wrong, here, there or elsewhere,” Scherer said.

Campbell Wilson, Air India’s CEO, said in a video posted on the airline’s social media pages that he had visited the crash site. He added that Air India’s owner, Tata Group, would provide approximately 1 crore rupees (approximately $115,900) to the family of each person killed and cover medical costs of those who were injured.

Air India had at least four in-flight incidents involving its 787 Dreamliner planes that required investigations by India’s civil aviation watchdog in the eight years before the crash Thursday. None involved the plane that crashed, which flew daily to destinations on five continents, according to investigation reports from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation.

The most recent incident was in August 2023, when a plane’s engine shut down as it climbed out of Mumbai en route to London, forcing a return to the Mumbai airport. No one was injured. An investigation found that a high-pressure compressor blade had separated because of locking lugs improperly installed while the blades were replaced in Taiwan in 2018.

GE Aerospace, the Cincinnati-headquartered engine manufacturer, said in a statement that its emergency response team is supporting the investigation. “We extend our heartfelt sympathies to the families and loved ones of those impacted,” GE Aerospace said in the statement.

Boeing shares closed down 1.7% Friday, after a 4.8% drop Thursday.