Air India crash is the latest test for new Boeing leadership

By Dan Catchpole, Nathan Gomes and Shashwat Chauhan

SEATTLE/BENGALURU (Reuters) - The crash of an Air India 787-8 Dreamliner jet minutes after taking off on Thursday puts the spotlight on Boeing executives as they head to next week's Paris Air Show, which typically carries a celebratory vibe as planemakers announce big orders and showcase their products.

Until Thursday, Boeing's new CEO Kelly Ortberg was set to walk into that event with several accomplishments as he tries to rebuild public trust in the U.S. jetmaker following a series of safety and production challenges.

The crash, however, is likely to be a topic of discussion, even though air safety experts said at this time there is no reason to think a manufacturing or design problem was the cause.

The plane crashed in the Indian city of Ahmedabad shortly after takeoff, killing nearly all of the 242 people on board, in the world's worst aviation disaster in a decade.

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, noted John Nance, an aviation safety expert and former commercial pilot. Of course, accident investigators will consider every possibility, he added.

With public perception of Boeing still on shaky ground, it 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, which runs June 16-22, 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 fell about 4.2% on Thursday.

In a statement, Ortberg said a Boeing team was ready to support the investigation.

Boeing was deemed responsible for three high-profile accidents involving 737 MAX aircraft 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 is 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 recognizable corporate brands by reputation put Boeing at 88th, same as in 2024.  

The widebody 787 planes, one of the most modern passenger aircraft in service, have never had a fatal crash until the Air India incident. 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% each.

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

(Reporting by Dan Catchpole in Seattle; additional reporting by Joanna Plucinska in London, Shashwat Chauhan, Nathan Gomes and Purvi Agarwal in Bengaluru and Shankar Ramakrishnan in New York; Editing by David Gaffen, Saumyadeb Chakrabarty, Arun Koyyur and Marguerita Choy)