Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner, once touted as the future of long-haul travel, is under renewed global scrutiny following the crash of Air India flight AI 171 on Thursday, the first-ever fatal incident involving the 787-8 model since it entered service in 2011.
This latest accident, which is the third plane crash overall in the past seven years for Boeing globally, adds to a troubling history of technical faults and safety concerns linked to the Dreamliner. The plane which crashed on Thursday was over 11 years old, had flown more than 41,000 hours and completed nearly 8,000 cycles.
Boeing shares plummeted nearly 8% on the NYSE in the pre-market session after news of the crash broke out.
Since its debut, the Dreamliner has faced multiple issues ranging from battery fires and generator malfunctions to fuselage integrity concerns. In 2013, the entire global fleet of Dreamliners was grounded after lithium-ion battery fires broke out on two separate aircraft, one in Boston and the other mid-air over Japan. Boeing was forced to redesign its battery system before the plane could return to service.
More recently, in March 2024, a Boeing 787-9 operated by LATAM Airlines experienced a sudden vertical drop mid-flight, injuring 50 passengers. A faulty cockpit seat was found to be the culprit. These incidents come amid broader concerns about Boeing’s quality control practices across its aircraft families. The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has kept the company under close watch, particularly after two fatal crashes involving its 737 Max aircraft in 2018 and 2019, followed by a mid-air door plug blowout on an Alaska Airlines Max jet in early 2024.
Whistleblowers have raised alarms about the Dreamliner. Sam Salehpour, a Boeing engineer, has earlier gone public alleging that fuselage sections on the 787 were being joined with gaps that could compromise structural integrity. According to Salehpour, “tiny gaps” were left unfilled during assembly, which could reduce the aircraft’s lifespan and potentially cause catastrophic failure. He had also said that production workers resorted to physically jumping on aircraft components to force alignments, a method which he saw as dangerous and unprofessional.
These allegations echoed earlier claims by John Barnett, another whistleblower who had worked at Boeing’s Charleston plant. Barnett had accused workers of deliberately installing sub-standard parts on the production line, particularly on early Dreamliners, including those delivered to Air India, which was the launch customer for the Charleston-built 787s in 2012.
The FAA launched investigations into Boeing’s production practices and halted Dreamliner deliveries for nearly two years from 2021. Although deliveries resumed with new inspection protocols, Salehpour’s legal team claimed the problematic gaps still persist.
Despite the controversies, Indian carriers continue to bet on Boeing. Air India has 34 Dreamliners in its current fleet, and an additional 44 are either ordered or under consideration. Other Indian airlines like Akasa Air have also placed significant orders. IndiGo, which primarily operate Airbus aircraft, has youngest fleet in the world, with the average age being four years. It has two leased Boeing 777s and one 787, in its fleet.
Boeing, in response to Thursday’s crash, said it is in touch with Air India and ready to offer support.
