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Economic Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Economic Times
Ahmedabad plane crash may dent Boeing plane orders
Reuters A tail of an Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner plane that crashed is seen stuck on a building after the incident in Ahmedabad Troubled American plane maker Boeing might see its challenges mounting after an Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, flying from Ahmedabad to Gatwick, crashed immediately after takeoff from Ahmedabad today. There were 242 people on board the aircraft, including pilots and cabin crew. The aircraft issued a MAYDAY call to ATC, but thereafter did not respond to calls made by ATC, aviation regulator DGCA said in a statement. "It gave a MAYDAY call to ATC, but thereafter, no response was given by the aircraft to the calls made by ATC. Aircraft immediately after departure from Runway 23, fell on the ground outside the airport perimeter. Heavy black smoke was seen coming from the accident site," said the DGCA, as quoted by it's too early to determine what caused the plane crash, the incident will bring Boeing back into focus. Boeing planes have been involved in several incidents in the past few years, raising doubts about the quality of production. Also Read | Ahmedabad Plane Crash: Air India passenger plane with 242 onboard crashes near Meghaninagar Boeing weighed down by controversies Boeing has been mired in a series of controversies over the past several years. These issues span safety concerns, corporate governance, regulatory scrutiny and production quality problems. The most significant catalyst was the two fatal crashes involving the 737 MAX aircraft, but the implications have extended well beyond that. Lion Air Flight 610 in 2018 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 in 2019 crashed within minutes of takeoff, killing 346 people. Both crashes were linked to a faulty system known as the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS). The flawed software pushed the nose of the aircraft downward based on erroneous sensor data. This led to a global grounding of the 737 MAX fleet for over 20 months. US Congressional investigations revealed a 'culture of concealment' at Boeing. Last year in January, a door plug panel on a 737 MAX 9 aircraft of Alaska Airlines blew out mid-flight due to missing bolts, narrowly avoiding a catastrophe. Federal Aviation Administration grounded the MAX 9 temporarily and launched a detailed audit into Boeing's production line. This resulted in additional penalties, delays in aircraft certification (including the 737 MAX 7 and MAX 10), and further erosion of corporate culture has been criticized as overly focused on cost-cutting and shareholder returns at the expense of engineering excellence and safety. A series of executive turnovers, including the ousting of former CEO Dennis Muilenburg, signaled internal faces competitive pressure from Airbus, which has gained market share during Boeing's turmoil. Continued delivery delays have strained relationships with airline customers, many of whom are diversifying their fleet choices. The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner model, which crashed in Ahmedabad today, has faced recurring technical scrutiny in recent years. A previous Economic Times report documented repeated diversions of a Dreamliner with registration code N819AN due to hydraulic leaks and flap malfunctions, leading to multiple flight cancellations in a span of just 25 days earlier this year. In addition, Boeing engineer and whistleblower Sam Salehpour had earlier raised alarms in the US media, alleging that the company took manufacturing shortcuts on both the 777 and 787 Dreamliner models. Salehpour warned that such compromises could pose catastrophic risks as these aircraft age. Also Read | Air India plane crash: One survivor found in seat 11A, currently under treatment Boeing's mega order pipelineIn recent years, Indian airlines have placed significant orders for Boeing aircraft, in response to the country's burgeoning aviation market. These acquisitions are pivotal in shaping the future of air travel in India, aligning with both domestic growth and international expansion substantial Boeing aircraft orders by Indian airlines are driven by the need for fleet modernization, network expansion and enhanced operational efficiency. As the Indian aviation sector continues to grow, these investments position airlines to meet future demands and maintain competitiveness in a rapidly evolving 2023, Air India ordered 220 jets from Boeing to revive its appeal with an all-new fleet. The airline also signed options to buy an additional 70 planes from Boeing, including 50 737 MAXs and 20 787 Dreamliners. Air India is said to be in discussions with Airbus and Boeing for a significant new aircraft order that may include around 200 additional single-aisle jets, industry sources told Reuters recently. Akasa Air, a low-cost airline which started operations about three years ago, has 226 Boeing 737 MAX jets on order. While Indigo operates a few Boeing jets, it has ordered over 900 planes from recent years Boeing has grappled with internal and external production problems and constraints. A strike last year at its plants in Washington and Oregon shut down production of the popular single-aisle woes have hit airlines globally. Delayed deliveries are frustrating airlines. At Akasa Air, hundreds of anxious pilots remain idle without work due to delayed deliveries. Air India's expansion plans can face challenges due to aircraft delivery delays. US budget carrier Southwest Airlines, which operates an all-Boeing fleet, had to lay off workers company-wide for the first time in its history, in part due to delivery the Ahmedabad plane crash probe reveals a production problem with Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, it will be another Boeing aircraft to come under controversy after Boeing 737 MAX 8 and 9. Air India and Akasa, which have together ordered more than a thousand Boeing jets, might feel further pressure. Further scrutiny and regulatory pressure can impact production schedules. Air India has placed orders for 20 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft too besides other Boeing jets. Last month, Qatar Airways signed a mega deal with Boeing which included 130 Dreamliners during US President Donald Trump's visit to the country. (With inputs from agencies)
2 days ago
- Business
Boeing's troubled era has dimmed the prospects of a preeminent American manufacturer
A London-bound Air India plane carrying more than 240 people crashed shortly after takeoff Thursday. Authorities said there were no known survivors. It was not immediately clear why Air India flight 171, a Boeing 787-8, crashed into a residential area five minutes after taking off. Boeing said it was aware of the reports of the crash and was 'working to gather more information.' It was the first fatal crash of a Boeing 787, a widebody, twin-engine plane known as the Dreamliner. But it's the latest in a string of troubles for Boeing, most of them tied to the 737 Max, a different plane. Here is a timeline of key events for Boeing in recent years: December 2009: The 787 Dreamliner makes its first flight, taking off from Paine Field in Everett, Washington. January 2013: 787s worldwide are grounded nearly three weeks after lithium ion batteries that are part of the planes led to a fire in one plane and smoke in a second. August 2015: The first 737 Max plane rolls off the production line and within a year are undergoing flight tests. Oct. 29, 2018: Lion Air Flight 610, a Boeing 737 Max 8, plunges into the Java Sea off the coast of Indonesia minutes after takeoff from Jakarta, killing all 189 people on board. Questions arise over a new Boeing flight-control system called MCAS that Boeing did not disclose to pilots and airlines. Indonesian investigators say the Flight 610 pilots struggled for control as the automated system pushed the nose of the plane down more than two dozen times. March 1, 2019: Wall Street remains enamored with Boeing as commercial aircraft orders rocket. Shares of Boeing Co. close at an all-time high of $430.35. March 10, 2019: Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, a Boeing 737 Max 8, crashes after takeoff from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, killing 157 passengers and crew members. Shares of Boeing begin a long, downward slide and have yet to recover. March 2019: Within days of the second crash, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and regulators in nations around the world order the grounding of all 737 Max jets. Dec. 23, 2019: Boeing ousts CEO Dennis Muilenburg, who was seen as pressuring the FAA to lift the Max grounding order. Jan. 7, 2021: U.S. Justice Department charges Boeing with fraud but won't prosecute the company for misleading regulators about the 737 Max if it pays a $2.5 billion settlement. Jan. 5, 2024: A panel covering an unused emergency exit blows off a 737 Max 9 during an Alaska Airlines flight. Pilots land the plane safely. Feb. 26, 2024: A panel of outside experts, convened after the two deadly crashes, reports Boeing's safety culture falls short despite the company's efforts to fix it. March 11, 2024: A LATAM Airlines Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner flight between Australia and New Zealand suddenly plunges, injuring 50 people. Boeing tells airlines to inspect switches on pilots' seats after a published report said an accidental cockpit seat movement likely cause the rapid loss of altitude. March 25, 2024: Dave Calhoun, who replaced Muilenburg, says he will step down as CEO by year-end as part of a broader shakeup of Boeing leadership. July 7, 2024: Boeing agrees to plead guilty to conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government for misleading regulators who approved pilot-training standards for the Max. July 31, 2024: Boeing names Kelly Ortberg as its new chief executive. Ortberg is a trained engineer and was CEO of aerospace supplier Rockwell Collins for eight years. Many see his appointment as an attempt by Boeing to get back to its roots. Sept 13, 2024: About 33,000 Boeing factory workers walk off the job in a strike that will cripple production at one of the preeminent manufacturers in the U.S. for almost two months. It is the first labor action taken against the company in 16 years. May 23, 2025: The Justice Department reaches a deal with Boeing that takes criminal prosecution off the table for allegedly misleading regulators about the 737 Max jetliner before the two fatal planes crashes. Boeing agreed to pay or invest more than $1.1 billion, including an additional $445 million for crash victims' families, removing the risk of a criminal conviction that would have jeopardized the company's status as a federal contractor.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Boeing's troubled era has dimmed the prospects of a preeminent American manufacturer
A London-bound Air India plane carrying more than 240 people crashed shortly after takeoff Thursday. Authorities said there were no known survivors. It was not immediately clear why Air India flight 171, a Boeing 787-8, crashed into a residential area five minutes after taking off. Boeing said it was aware of the reports of the crash and was 'working to gather more information.' It was the first fatal crash of a Boeing 787, a widebody, twin-engine plane known as the Dreamliner. But it's the latest in a string of troubles for Boeing, most of them tied to the 737 Max, a different plane. Here is a timeline of key events for Boeing in recent years: December 2009: The 787 Dreamliner makes its first flight, taking off from Paine Field in Everett, Washington. January 2013: 787s worldwide are grounded nearly three weeks after lithium ion batteries that are part of the planes led to a fire in one plane and smoke in a second. August 2015: The first 737 Max plane rolls off the production line and within a year are undergoing flight tests. Oct. 29, 2018: Lion Air Flight 610, a Boeing 737 Max 8, plunges into the Java Sea off the coast of Indonesia minutes after takeoff from Jakarta, killing all 189 people on board. Questions arise over a new Boeing flight-control system called MCAS that Boeing did not disclose to pilots and airlines. Indonesian investigators say the Flight 610 pilots struggled for control as the automated system pushed the nose of the plane down more than two dozen times. March 1, 2019: Wall Street remains enamored with Boeing as commercial aircraft orders rocket. Shares of Boeing Co. close at an all-time high of $430.35. March 10, 2019: Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, a Boeing 737 Max 8, crashes after takeoff from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, killing 157 passengers and crew members. Shares of Boeing begin a long, downward slide and have yet to recover. March 2019: Within days of the second crash, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and regulators in nations around the world order the grounding of all 737 Max jets. Dec. 23, 2019: Boeing ousts CEO Dennis Muilenburg, who was seen as pressuring the FAA to lift the Max grounding order. Jan. 7, 2021: U.S. Justice Department charges Boeing with fraud but won't prosecute the company for misleading regulators about the 737 Max if it pays a $2.5 billion settlement. Jan. 5, 2024: A panel covering an unused emergency exit blows off a 737 Max 9 during an Alaska Airlines flight. Pilots land the plane safely. Feb. 26, 2024: A panel of outside experts, convened after the two deadly crashes, reports Boeing's safety culture falls short despite the company's efforts to fix it. March 11, 2024: A LATAM Airlines Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner flight between Australia and New Zealand suddenly plunges, injuring 50 people. Boeing tells airlines to inspect switches on pilots' seats after a published report said an accidental cockpit seat movement likely cause the rapid loss of altitude. March 25, 2024: Dave Calhoun, who replaced Muilenburg, says he will step down as CEO by year-end as part of a broader shakeup of Boeing leadership. July 7, 2024: Boeing agrees to plead guilty to conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government for misleading regulators who approved pilot-training standards for the Max. July 31, 2024: Boeing names Kelly Ortberg as its new chief executive. Ortberg is a trained engineer and was CEO of aerospace supplier Rockwell Collins for eight years. Many see his appointment as an attempt by Boeing to get back to its roots. Sept 13, 2024: About 33,000 Boeing factory workers walk off the job in a strike that will cripple production at one of the preeminent manufacturers in the U.S. for almost two months. It is the first labor action taken against the company in 16 years. May 23, 2025: The Justice Department reaches a deal with Boeing that takes criminal prosecution off the table for allegedly misleading regulators about the 737 Max jetliner before the two fatal planes crashes. Boeing agreed to pay or invest more than $1.1 billion, including an additional $445 million for crash victims' families, removing the risk of a criminal conviction that would have jeopardized the company's status as a federal contractor. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Winnipeg Free Press
2 days ago
- Business
- Winnipeg Free Press
Boeing's troubled era has dimmed the prospects of a preeminent American manufacturer
A London-bound Air India plane carrying more than 240 people crashed shortly after takeoff Thursday. Authorities said there were no known survivors. It was not immediately clear why Air India flight 171, a Boeing 787-8, crashed into a residential area five minutes after taking off. Boeing said it was aware of the reports of the crash and was 'working to gather more information.' It was the first fatal crash of a Boeing 787, a widebody, twin-engine plane known as the Dreamliner. But it's the latest in a string of troubles for Boeing, most of them tied to the 737 Max, a different plane. Here is a timeline of key events for Boeing in recent years: December 2009: The 787 Dreamliner makes its first flight, taking off from Paine Field in Everett, Washington. January 2013: 787s worldwide are grounded nearly three weeks after lithium ion batteries that are part of the planes led to a fire in one plane and smoke in a second. August 2015: The first 737 Max plane rolls off the production line and within a year are undergoing flight tests. Oct. 29, 2018: Lion Air Flight 610, a Boeing 737 Max 8, plunges into the Java Sea off the coast of Indonesia minutes after takeoff from Jakarta, killing all 189 people on board. Questions arise over a new Boeing flight-control system called MCAS that Boeing did not disclose to pilots and airlines. Indonesian investigators say the Flight 610 pilots struggled for control as the automated system pushed the nose of the plane down more than two dozen times. March 1, 2019: Wall Street remains enamored with Boeing as commercial aircraft orders rocket. Shares of Boeing Co. close at an all-time high of $430.35. March 10, 2019: Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, a Boeing 737 Max 8, crashes after takeoff from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, killing 157 passengers and crew members. Shares of Boeing begin a long, downward slide and have yet to recover. March 2019: Within days of the second crash, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and regulators in nations around the world order the grounding of all 737 Max jets. Dec. 23, 2019: Boeing ousts CEO Dennis Muilenburg, who was seen as pressuring the FAA to lift the Max grounding order. Jan. 7, 2021: U.S. Justice Department charges Boeing with fraud but won't prosecute the company for misleading regulators about the 737 Max if it pays a $2.5 billion settlement. Jan. 5, 2024: A panel covering an unused emergency exit blows off a 737 Max 9 during an Alaska Airlines flight. Pilots land the plane safely. Feb. 26, 2024: A panel of outside experts, convened after the two deadly crashes, reports Boeing's safety culture falls short despite the company's efforts to fix it. March 11, 2024: A LATAM Airlines Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner flight between Australia and New Zealand suddenly plunges, injuring 50 people. Boeing tells airlines to inspect switches on pilots' seats after a published report said an accidental cockpit seat movement likely cause the rapid loss of altitude. Monday Mornings The latest local business news and a lookahead to the coming week. March 25, 2024: Dave Calhoun, who replaced Muilenburg, says he will step down as CEO by year-end as part of a broader shakeup of Boeing leadership. July 7, 2024: Boeing agrees to plead guilty to conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government for misleading regulators who approved pilot-training standards for the Max. July 31, 2024: Boeing names Kelly Ortberg as its new chief executive. Ortberg is a trained engineer and was CEO of aerospace supplier Rockwell Collins for eight years. Many see his appointment as an attempt by Boeing to get back to its roots. Sept 13, 2024: About 33,000 Boeing factory workers walk off the job in a strike that will cripple production at one of the preeminent manufacturers in the U.S. for almost two months. It is the first labor action taken against the company in 16 years. May 23, 2025: The Justice Department reaches a deal with Boeing that takes criminal prosecution off the table for allegedly misleading regulators about the 737 Max jetliner before the two fatal planes crashes. Boeing agreed to pay or invest more than $1.1 billion, including an additional $445 million for crash victims' families, removing the risk of a criminal conviction that would have jeopardized the company's status as a federal contractor.
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Editorial: Chicago didn't ruin Boeing, but the company paid a price for moving out of Seattle.
Seattle and Boeing were together for decades until Chicago came along. But after the company moved its headquarters from a cloudy city to a windy one, it struggled. Was it us? The deep-dish pizza and Italian beef? The ongoing wait for another Super Bowl title? As this iconic aerospace giant tries to regain altitude after yet another turbulent stretch, it's fair to ask if its move to Chicago in 2001 put it on the wrong course altogether. When then-Mayor Richard M. Daley announced that the city had won a bidding contest for Boeing's headquarters, this page joined in the celebration. The company got over $60 million in public incentives for moving its boardroom to the Loop. Chicago got bragging rights. The move made sense to us at the time. Chicago gave Boeing's leadership team the convenient, centralized transportation hub they were missing in the Pacific Northwest. Settling in a more global city with a financially savvy workforce was widely considered a plus as well. Moving out of Seattle also put almost 2,000 miles between the company's top brass and its restive unions, which might have been one of the biggest attractions from the corner-office point of view. As it turned out, though, the move seems to have undermined an engineering-friendly culture focused on design, safety and quality. In retrospect, separating from the critical mass of aerospace experts in Seattle isolated the company's leaders from the heart of their business. Apart from the move to Chicago, the other 'X factor' in that transformation was Boeing's 1997 acquisition of McDonnell Douglas, a company better known for financial engineering than the aerospace kind. Its priorities were quarterly profits and returning money to Wall Street shareholders — priorities Boeing embraced after the deal closed, appointing a string of chief executive officers who collected massive paychecks but cut corners in making planes. One outcome of this change was the decision to upgrade a popular passenger jet instead of designing a new one with all the latest advances, as the perfectionists at old-school Boeing no doubt would have preferred. Extending the life of its workhorse 737s helped Boeing's bottom line in the short run. Over time, that approach opened the company to serious problems, including the notorious 737 MAX crashes. In October 2018, this newly modified version of the old 737 jetliner crashed near Indonesia. Five months later, another new 737 MAX crashed in Ethiopia. Boeing had reconfigured the MAX model with bigger engines that affected its aerodynamics, and federal regulators had given the company too much control over certifying the new design. A faulty flight-control system forced down the two planes despite their pilots' desperate efforts to keep them aloft, killing a combined 346 aboard. Instead of taking responsibility, the company reportedly tried to blame the foreign airlines and resisted grounding its MAX fleet in the interest of safety. Then-CEO Dennis Muilenburg spouted insincere baloney about safety being a core value, until he was finally ousted by a board that paid him off with a $62 million exit package. In the waning days of the first administration of President Donald Trump, Boeing reached a settlement with the Justice Department that protected it from prosecution over the MAX crashes. Shortly after, in 2022, the company moved from Chicago to Arlington, Virginia, closer to its No. 1 customer: Uncle Sam. Last year brought another shocking safety gaffe, when a door panel blew off in midair from a 737 MAX 9 operated by Alaska Airlines. A few months later, federal prosecutors determined that Boeing had violated its deferred prosecution deal by failing to implement a compliance and ethics program. In response, Boeing agreed to plead guilty to criminal fraud, but a federal judge in Texas rejected the plea deal because it included diversity goals. Now, with Trump back in power, Boeing appears likely to receive a lighter settlement that avoids a criminal plea. During a recent Middle East trip, Trump also publicly promoted Boeing jets — a reminder of the company's political clout and close ties to its largest customer: the U.S. government. Cozying up to a pro-defense administration may be giving Boeing's stock a boost, but it won't restore public trust or prevent future failures. Boeing recently published the sad results of an all-employee survey, its first in years. Most Boeing employees said they lack faith in senior leadership, and barely a quarter recommend the company as a good place to work. That's a big comedown from the old days. Still, Boeing stock has bounced back strongly this year and its new-ish CEO, Kelly Ortberg, says he is putting the company's problems behind it. Earlier this month, Ortberg told Wall Street that he's introducing 'new values and behaviors to the entire organization,' vowing to 'seize the moment to make the necessary changes within the company.' Ortberg also reportedly bought a house in Seattle last year, which we consider a positive step. If Boeing was going to move the headquarters anywhere from Chicago, and if it was serious about rebuilding its culture, it probably should have moved back to Seattle. Still, its time here left a positive mark: Boeing supported civic institutions, hired local talent and helped elevate Chicago's stature as a center for global business. Submit a letter, of no more than 400 words, to the editor here or email letters@
