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Business Insider
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Business Insider
Boeing faces fresh delays to new versions of its wildly popular 737 Max as it doubles down on its safety focus
A pair of upcoming variants of Boeing's most popular plane, the 737 Max have been further delayed to 2026, CEO Kelly Ortberg confirmed in an earnings call Tuesday. Achieving certification for the Max 7 and Max 10 will be a key benchmark for Ortberg, who is approaching one year at the helm and has been leading Boeing's turnaround. The company had initially hoped the Max 7, the shortest version of the flagship narrow-body jet, would be certified in 2022. However, it has been constrained by work on the engine anti-ice system, a key safety feature that prevents ice from building up during cold weather conditions and at high altitude. "Work on the solution is taking longer than expected, and we now are expecting certification in 2026," Ortberg said on the second-quarter earnings call. The delay was first reported last week by industry publication The Air Current. Back in 2023, the Federal Aviation Administration warned that the system could cause the engine to overheat — and potentially result in debris breaking off and hitting the plane. Boeing then requested an exemption, saying an engine breakup is "extremely improbable," but withdrew this request in January 2024 as it faced a safety crisis in the wake of the Alaska Airlines blowout. Figuring out a solution for the complex system has been far from straightforward. Ortberg told investors on Tuesday that Boeing has been exploring different design paths. "We found some issues with the design implementation we had, so we're going to have to back up and make some additional design changes to get through that de-icing requirement," he said. "Basically, the engineering designs have not yielded in the time frame that we were anticipating, and so we still have work to do." His comments came after Ryanair's earnings call last week, when CEO Michael O'Leary said Boeing's commercial airplanes chief wrote to confirm the airline's first 15 Max 10s would be delivered in the spring of 2027. Meanwhile, Boeing is also working to certify the 777X — a twin-engine wide-body jet, also years behind schedule. It's now expected to enter service in 2026 as well. "Flight testing continues with no new technical issues to report," Ortberg said during the earnings call. Boeing reported quarterly revenues above expectations of $22.7 billion, with a net loss of $612 million. It's been ramping up production of its cash-cow 737 Max, reaching the 38-a-month limit imposed by the FAA. Its share price fell about 4% on Tuesday, but is still up more than 30% since the start of the year.
Mint
17-07-2025
- General
- Mint
AAIB slams media, urges them to stop speculating on AI-171 crash
The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) on Thursday slammed speculative media reports, including those from international news outlets such as The Wall Street Journal and The Air Current, regarding the London-bound Air India (AI) flight that crashed soon after lift-off from Ahmedabad on 12 June. The bureau urged the public and media organizations alike to refrain from drawing premature conclusions based on its initial probe into the AI-operated Boeing 787 Dreamliner plane crash in which more than 240 people perished, calling such actions as irresponsible and insensitive to the victims' families. 'It has come to our attention that certain sections of the international media are repeatedly attempting to draw conclusions through selective and unverified reporting. Such actions are irresponsible, especially while the investigation remains ongoing,' the AAIB said. Emphasizing its flawless record of investigation, the AAIB said that it is probing the Air India plane crash in a rigourous and professional manner in accordance with the rules of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a UN body. 'While the accident of this dimension has drawn public attention and shock, however, it needs to be appreciated that this is not the time to create public anxiety or angst towards safety of Indian Aviation Industry, particularly on the basis of unfounded facts,' said AAIB in its appeal. It added, 'AAIB works in accordance with the Aircraft (Investigation of Accidents and Incidents) Rules, 2017, and is responsible for fulfilling the obligations of the Government of India towards ICAO Annex 13. AAIB has a flawless record in investigating 92 Accidents and 111 Serious incidents since its inception in 2012.' Since the accident, international media organizations like the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), The Air Current, among others, have been putting out information around the crash. The Wall Street Journal's report, in particular, on possible issue with fuel switch of the Boeing Dreamliner aircraft, 24 hours prior to AAIB releasing the preliminary report, has drawn criticism. On Thursday, the American publication put out yet another source-based news report on the AI-171 crash. The report said that Captain Sumeet Sabharwal likely switched off the fuel supply. 'A black-box recording of dialogue between the flight's two pilots indicates it was the captain who turned off switches that controlled fuel flowing to the plane's two engines, according to people familiar with U.S. officials' early assessment of evidence uncovered in the crash investigation,' the WSJ report said. Calling out international media publications, the AAIB said it is essential to respect the sensitivity of the loss faced by family members of deceased passengers, crew and other deceased persons on ground. AAIB further said that the purpose of the preliminary report was to provide information about what happened. The investigation by AAIB is underway and the final investigation report will come out with root causes and recommendations. Pilot associations on Thursday expressed shock and disappointment on speculative news reports. Airline Pilots' Association India (ALPA) said it is deeply concerned by the commentary and attempts to assign blame to the deceased AI-171 pilots. 'Pilots are trained professionals who carry the responsibility of hundreds of lives with dedication and dignity. The crew of AI-171 made every possible effort till the end. They deserve respect, not unfounded character judgments,' said ALPA India. Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP) and ALPA India have also urged the Union aviation ministry to have pilot representation in the investigation. FIP also asked the government to reassess possible technical misinterpretation or mechanical faults in Air India's Boeing 787-8 aircraft.
New Straits Times
09-07-2025
- General
- New Straits Times
Toll of Air India disaster rests at 260 as focus turns to crash report
AHMEDABAD, India: Indian forensic investigators have identified all 260 people killed in last month's crash of a London-bound passenger plane, health authorities said Wednesday, ahead of a hugely anticipated preliminary report into what went wrong. India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau is leading the probe into one of the deadliest air disasters in decades -- with an initial report expected to be released on Friday, a month after the crash. All but one of the 242 people aboard the Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner were killed when it crashed on June 12. It ploughed into housing just after takeoff in the western city of Ahmedabad, and authorities have also identified 19 people killed on the ground. No details have been released about the probe, in which British and US air accident investigation agencies have also taken part. But specialist website The Air Current, citing multiple people knowledgeable with the investigation, reported it had "narrowed its focus to the movement of the engine fuel switches", while noting that full analysis will "take months -- if not longer". It noted that "the focus of the investigators could change during that time". But it also said that, "at this point in the inquiry, the data available to investigators does not indicate a mechanical or design issue" with the 787 plane, or its engines. The site said that its sources "indicated that post-accident analysis showed no sign of fuel contamination or improper retraction of the aircraft's flaps", over which there has been speculation as a contributing cause. Health officials in the Indian state of Gujarat initially said that at least 279 people were killed, but forensic scientists reduced the figure after multiple scattered and badly burnt remains were identified. "The final death toll in the plane crash now stands at 260," Rakesh Joshi, head of Ahmedabad's main state hospital, told AFP on Wednesday. "All the human remains found so far from the crash site have been identified and handed over to their families," Joshi added. "Our work is now over," he added. "We have matched DNA of all the mortal remains that were collected from the crash site". The UN's International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) stipulates that states heading investigation must submit a preliminary report to the Canada-headquarted organisation within 30 days of an accident. That report, however, does not have to be made public.
NDTV
09-07-2025
- General
- NDTV
Air India Crash Probe Focusing On Movement Of Engine Fuel Control Switches: Report
New Delhi: A report in the well-regarded aviation journal, The Air Current says "the ongoing investigation into the cause of the June 12 crash of Air India flight 171 has narrowed its focus to the movement of the engine fuel control switches." The article, which attributes its information to "multiple people with knowledge of the investigation," comes in a week when India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Board (AAIB) is expected to make public the preliminary report of its AI-171 investigation. At the time of publication of this report, neither the AAIB nor the Civil Aviation Ministry have announced the precise date on which the preliminary report will be published, though India, as a member of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), is expected to release the report within 30 days of the incident. It is, therefore, widely believed that the preliminary report will be released on July 11, if not earlier. 260 people were killed when AI-171 on a flight from Ahmedabad to London-Gatwick on June 12 crashed within 35 seconds of taking off. 241 people onboard the Dreamliner were killed. The other fatalities were on the ground. One passenger on the Dreamliner had a miraculous escape. While the article in The Air Current doesn't explicitly say as much, any focus on the fuel-control switches of the Boeing 787 points to the possibility of pilot error. Aviation experts not related to the crash investigation have told NDTV that in the event of a single-engine failure on AI-171 shortly after take-off, it is conceivable that one of the pilots accidentally switched off the fuel supply to the wrong engine, in other words, the engine which was still operational. In certain situations, including an in-flight engine failure, pilots are expected to switch off fuel flow to a malfunctioning engine as part of operating procedures to 'secure' this unit. Put simply, if AI-171 had suffered an engine failure on one of its two General Electric Aerospace GEnx-1B engines, the last thing pilots should have been doing is switching off fuel flow to the only operational power plant. Restarting ('relighting') an engine inflight is not an instant process and needs the pilots to work through a brief set of procedures. With no altitude, and therefore no time available, it may have been impossible for the pilots to have restarted the operational engine on AI-171 and fly out of danger if they realised they had accidentally switched off the wrong one. NDTV cannot independently verify the accuracy of the report in The Air Current nor confirm that pilot error was, in any way, a primary cause for the crash of AI-171. The Air Current report additionally points out that ''the lack of any kind of advisory warning from Boeing or GE operators, known as a multi-operator message (MOM) or all-ops wire, in the 13 days that have followed the initial black box reading in Delhi by the AAIB on June 25 is a key signal that a mechanical failure is not immediately suspected as the likely cause of the crash.'' It is still unclear when the final crash report will be published or whether the much-anticipated preliminary report will reveal the likely causes of the first-ever Boeing 787 crash.
Express Tribune
09-07-2025
- General
- Express Tribune
As crash preliminary report nears, Air India jet's fuel switches in focus
A tail of an Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner plane that crashed is seen stuck on a building after the incident in Ahmedabad, India Listen to article A preliminary report into the deadly crash of an Air India jetliner in June is expected to be released by Friday, three sources with knowledge of the matter said, with one adding the probe had narrowed its focus to the movement of the plane's fuel control switches. The London-bound Boeing (BA.N) 787 Dreamliner, which started losing height after reaching an altitude of 650 feet, crashed moments after takeoff from Ahmedabad, India, killing 241 of the 242 people on board and the rest on the ground. The investigation into the Air India crash is focusing on the movement of the engine fuel control switches following an analysis of the 787's flight and voice data recorders, along with a simulation by Boeing of the aircraft's final moments, one of the sources said. The investigation has not raised any immediate concerns over mechanical failure, the source said, and there has been no bulletin to airlines recommending changes to 787 operations. Boeing declined to comment. Aviation industry publication The Air Current first reported the focus on the fuel switches that help power the plane's two engines. It was not clear what specific actions involving the fuel switches are being looked at by investigators. Sources told the Air Current that the available information on the black boxes could not rule in or out improper, inadvertent, or intentional actions that preceded or followed the apparent loss of thrust before the aircraft crashed. US aviation safety expert John Cox said a pilot would not be able to accidentally move the fuel switches that feed the engines. "You can't bump them and they move," he said. Cox added that if a switch were shut off, the effect would be almost immediate, cutting off engine power. Read: Regulators warned Air India Express about delay on Airbus engine fix Most air crashes are caused by multiple factors. The investigation is focusing at least partly on engine thrust, Reuters reported last month. While the report from Indian investigators could be made public on Friday, the three sources cautioned Reuters that plans could change and there was no clarity on how much information would be available in the document, which comes about 30 days after the June 12 tragedy. The sources spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak to the media. India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau, which is leading the probe under international rules, did not respond immediately to a request for comment outside normal business hours. Information release The probe has been dogged by questions over a lack of information, after investigators took about two weeks to download flight recorder data after the crash. The Indian government held only one press conference on the incident, and no questions were taken. However, India reversed course on an earlier decision reported by Reuters to prevent a UN aviation investigator from joining the probe, two senior sources said. A specialist from the UN's International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) was granted observer status, following an unusual request by the agency to offer its support. ICAO declined to comment, adding in a statement that any public discussion of "cooperative arrangements" would require authorisation by the state. The crash is challenging the Tata Group's ambitious campaign to restore Air India's reputation and revamp its fleet, after taking the carrier over from the government in 2022. India is banking on a boom in aviation to support wider development goals, with New Delhi saying it wants India to be a job-creating global aviation hub along the lines of Dubai, which currently handles much of the country's international traffic. A panel of Indian lawmakers will review safety in the country's civil aviation sector and has invited several industry and government officials to answer questions on Wednesday, with topics set to include the recent plane crash.
