Ahmedabad plane crash: A rare tragedy for the Boeing 787 Dreamliner

A Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner operated by Air India crashed shortly after taking off from Ahmedabad’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport (SVPIA) on Thursday (June 12). The aircraft, Flight AI171, was en route to London Gatwick and had 242 people on board with 230 passengers and 12 crew members.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is leading an investigation into the crash, alongside experts from Boeing, to determine what went wrong; whether it was a technical malfunction, a human error, or a combination of factors.

An engineering breakthrough

The Boeing 787 Dreamliner was first introduced in 2011, and the aircraft was born out of Boeing’s decision to shift gears from its earlier Sonic Cruiser project, which it abandoned in 2003.

The company refocused its efforts on efficiency and comfort, launching what was initially called the 7E7 before rebranding it as the 787.

The Dreamliner’s early years were not without setbacks. Boeing faced significant production delays due to supply chain hiccups, and in 2013, the entire 787 fleet was temporarily grounded after incidents involving overheating lithium-ion batteries.

A major leap came from its use of composite materials; about 50 per cent of the plane’s structure is made from carbon-fibre-reinforced polymer. This makes the aircraft lighter, which apparently in turn improves fuel efficiency and range. The 787 also replaced many traditional pneumatic and hydraulic systems with electric components.

Watch | 'No emergency landing': Air India Trichy fiasco throws up stunning new details

By doing so, it apparently reduced the amount of energy the engines needed to siphon off, cutting power extraction by around 35 per cent.

Passenger comfort

Passenger comfort was another area where Boeing set new standards. The Dreamliner features larger windows, better air quality, and higher cabin humidity to combat jet lag and fatigue.

It can carry between 200 and 300 passengers over distances of up to 8,500 nautical miles, making it ideal for non-stop, long-haul routes that bypass traditional airline hubs.

Despite these advances, the Dreamliner’s early years were not without setbacks. Boeing faced significant production delays due to supply chain hiccups, and in 2013, the entire 787 fleet was temporarily grounded after incidents involving overheating lithium-ion batteries.

The issue was eventually resolved, and the model went on to build a reputation for reliability. By mid-2025, more than 1,150 units had been delivered worldwide.

Boeing vs Airbus safety record

Boeing has a long and complicated safety record, marked by major accidents involving its best-known aircraft. The 737 Classic was linked to 494 fatalities, while the 737 Next Generation saw 754. In contrast, Airbus’s A320 family, its core narrowbody models, has a similar fatality rate per million flights.

However, because Boeing jets have flown more often, the total number of incidents involving Boeing is higher.

Between 2010 and 2019, Boeing recorded 67 fatal accidents; Airbus had 58. Adjusted for flight volume, their safety performances are broadly comparable.

Tough recent years

Recent years have been particularly difficult for Boeing. The two 737 MAX crashes in 2018 and 2019, which killed 346 people, exposed flaws in the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS) and in regulatory oversight.

In 2024, a Jeju Air 737-800 crash in South Korea killed 179 people, the deadliest aviation disaster of the year, and further damaged Boeing’s reputation.

At the same time, whistleblower deaths have raised new alarms. John Barnett and Joshua Dean died in 2024 after warning about manufacturing defects. Their deaths, still unexplained, have prompted more insiders to speak out. Although Boeing’s 2023 report noted a 65% global decline in aviation fatalities since 2004, the company now faces a serious test of credibility, safety, and leadership.

Air India and Boeing

While Air India’s narrow-body fleet is dominated by Airbus, its wide-body and long-haul fleet continues to rely heavily on Boeing jets, with more of both types scheduled for delivery in the coming years.

As of January 2025, Air India operates 205 aircraft, with Airbus narrow-bodies, mainly A320neo variants, making up the bulk of its domestic fleet. For long-haul routes, it uses 50 Boeing wide-bodies, including 777s and 787s.

Its low-cost arm, Air India Express, runs 103 aircraft, 67 of which are Boeings. The airline has also placed new orders for 570 aircraft ; and the split is 220 from Boeing and 350 from Airbus as part of a major fleet expansion.

A near-flawless record

Until today’s crash in Ahmedabad, the Boeing 787 had never experienced a fatal accident or a total hull loss. The 2013 battery issues, though serious, did not result in any crashes or injuries.

That spotless record has now been broken, and investigators are moving quickly to determine the cause. The aircraft’s flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder will be central to understanding what happened. Maintenance logs and the pilots’ actions during takeoff will also be scrutinised.

To put the Dreamliner’s track record in perspective, consider that between 2014 and 2023, the rate of fatal accidents per million departures was just 0.08 in the Asia-Pacific region and 0.07 in North America. In Western Africa, by contrast, the figure was much higher—3.95 per million departures.

These statistics from Boeing’s 2023 Statistical Summary offer a backdrop against which today's tragedy can be understood. For the Asia-Pacific region, where the Ahmedabad crash occurred, such incidents remain exceptionally rare.