Air India crash is the latest test for new Boeing leadership

Seattle/Bengaluru: Boeing leadership was back in crisis mode on Thursday following the deadly crash of an Air India 787-8 Dreamliner jet minutes after take-off earlier in the day.

The planemaker's new CEO Kelly Ortberg had been set to head to the Paris Air Show, the industry's biggest event of the year, after several key accomplishments in recent weeks as he tries to rebuild public trust in Boeing following a series of safety and production crises.

But his plan to attend the show next week with Boeing Commercial Airplanes head Stephanie Pope has been scrapped, Ortberg said, as the company focuses on the investigation into the first-ever crash of a 787 jet, its most advanced model.

"As our industry prepares to start the Paris Air Show, Stephanie (Pope) and I have both canceled plans to attend so we can be with our team, and focus on our customer and the investigation," Ortberg wrote in a message to employees on Thursday evening that was seen by Reuters.

The Air India plane bound for London crashed in the Indian city of Ahmedabad, killing nearly all of the 242 people on board, in the world's worst aviation disaster in a decade.

Air safety experts have said that at this time there is no reason to think a manufacturing or design problem was the cause, but the reason for the air disaster is not clear.

"Safety is foundational to our industry and is at the core of everything that we do," Ortberg told employees. "Our technical experts are prepared to assist investigators to understand the circumstances, and a Boeing team stands ready to travel to India."

The biggest challenge for Boeing could be getting lay people to understand that while a jet it made crashed, it is unlikely that Boeing is at fault, said John Nance, an aviation safety expert and former commercial pilot. Of course, accident investigators will consider every possibility, he added.

With public perception of the planemaker still on shaky ground, that will fall to Boeing executives to address. Ortberg has been trying to move the company past a series of regulatory and safety crises, and was heading into the Paris Air Show after a busy month that included more than 300 new orders and a ramp-up in 737 production.

"Previous production issues at Boeing will be very much on people’s minds at the moment and the relatively new leadership at Boeing needs to be visible in the days to come," said Paul Charles, CEO of the PC Agency, a London-based luxury travel consultancy.

Boeing shares closed 4.8 per cent lower on Thursday.

Max problems

Boeing was deemed responsible for three high-profile accidents involving 737 MAX narrow-body planes in recent years, including two fatal crashes. A January 2024 incident, when a door plug blew off a new plane mid-flight, damaged its reputation and led to the departure of then-CEO Dave Calhoun, as well as head of commercial planes and its board chair.

The Air India plane that crashed in the city of Ahmedabad was more than a decade old. It first flew in late 2013 and was delivered to Air India in January 2014. Since then, it accumulated more than 41,000 flight hours, including 420 hours during 58 flights in May and 165 hours during 21 flights in June, according to Cirium, an aviation data analytics firm, and FlightRadar24, a flight tracking website.

Before the crash, airline executives had voiced greater confidence in Boeing's rebound in deliveries and in Ortberg's leadership after years of reputational damage for the planemaker. The public has not yet caught on, however. Last month, the Axios Harris poll of 100 recognisable corporate brands by reputation put Boeing at 88th, same as in 2024.

The wide-body 787 planes have had a strong safety record. They were grounded in 2013 due to battery issues, but no one was reported injured.

Boeing's narrowbody 737 MAX jets were grounded for years following two fatal crashes and have faced years of scrutiny and production delays.

"Due to the crash, there could be enhanced scrutiny on manufacturing and quality procedures. However, at this time, we do not feel there will be a long-term impact to production," said Edward Jones analyst Jeff Windau.

Shares of Spirit AeroSystems, a key supplier, and GE Aerospace, which makes engines for the jet, also fell about 2 per cent each.

Boeing's outstanding debt also sold off modestly after the crash.