Boeing 787-8 Crash: An Air India flight heading to London from Ahmedabad crashed just minutes after takeoff on Thursday afternoon, killing all 242 people on board. This is the first deadly crash involving a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner since the aircraft entered service in 2011. The plane, Air India flight AI171, left Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Airport around 2 p.m. but dropped from a height of just over 600 feet and slammed into a residential area nearby.
Just before the crash, the pilots sent out a “Mayday” distress call, but air traffic control did not respond. Thick smoke and flames came out of the crash spot and were seen from far away in the city. Officials confirmed that no one on the plane survived this includes passengers, pilots, and crew. The area around the crash site was quickly filled with emergency responders.
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Three NDRF teams from Gandhinagar reached the spot fast, and more teams are being sent from Vadodara. The central government promised full help with the rescue and investigation. President Droupadi Murmu said the accident was a “heart-rending disaster.”
The Plane’s History and Background
The aircraft involved was a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner. This model had never been in a fatal accident until today. It first flew with Japan’s All Nippon Airways in 2011. Since then, over 1,000 Dreamliners have been delivered, and they have carried more than one billion people around the world. Boeing made this aircraft using lightweight composite material to save fuel, and airlines love it for long-distance flights. The 787-8 can carry around 242 passengers and travel more than 13,000 kilometers without stopping.
Air India added this model to its fleet in 2012 as part of its plan to upgrade from older Boeing 747s. Right now the Air India has 27 of these 787-8 planes. It also operates 7 of the newer 787-9 versions, and other wide-body jets like the A350 and Boeing 777s. The crashed plane used engines made by General Electric, and GE has said it will fully support the crash investigation.
Even though the Dreamliner is known for being safe, it has faced problems in the past. Back in 2013, a Dreamliner caught fire while parked in London because of a short circuit. That same year, the global fleet was grounded for a short time after battery overheating issues in Japan and the US. Recently in March 2023, a LATAM-operated 787 suddenly dropped mid-air, hurting many passengers.
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Production Issues
The 787 programme also faced troubles during its production years. Between 2021 and 2023, Boeing had to stop deliveries several times because of quality problems. The US aviation authority, FAA, had to increase its checks at Boeing’s factories. Sales also dropped. In May, Boeing could not deliver any planes to China, even though Chinese airlines had received approval before. This happened during trade tensions between the US and China.
Recently, whistleblower and engineer Sam Salehpour said in reports by CNN and The New York Times that Boeing may have taken shortcuts while building 787s and 777s. He warned that the parts of the 787 fuselage may not be fixed properly and could break mid-air after many flights.
Salehpour said, “I am doing this not because I want Boeing to fail, but because I want it to succeed and prevent crashes from happening. The truth is, Boeing can’t keep going the way it is. It needs to do a little bit better, I think.”
The crash happened just very soon after takeoff. According to Firstpost, “As per ATC, the aircraft departed from Ahmedabad at 13:39 IST from runway 23. It gave a MAYDAY call to ATC, but thereafter, no response was given to subsequent calls. The aircraft, shortly after takeoff, fell outside the airport perimeter. Heavy black smoke was seen rising from the accident site,” the DGCA said.
