The Boeing 787 Dreamliner that crashed in the Indian city of Ahmedabad is the pride of Boeing’s catalogue for long-distance planes: a fuel-efficient, wide-body aircraft able to transport up to 330 people.
The crash was the first ever for a Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The London-bound passenger plane that crashed in India’s western city of Ahmedabad is a long-haul aircraft that has been in operation since 2011
Lightweight
After first entering service in October 2011, with Japan’s All Nippon Airways, 2,598 of the planes have been ordered by more than 80 airlines around the world, with 889 still awaiting delivery.
Its appeal is its lightweight structure, half of which is made from composite materials, allowing it to burn up to 20 percent less fuel over long distances than older, equivalent-sized passenger planes.
It can be used for “point-to-point” services, meaning it can fly directly to a destination instead of relying on a “hub” system used by heavier aircraft. Boeing says the use of the 787 has opened up 180 such “point-to-point” routes, more than the 80 initially banked upon.
Three Versions
There are currently three versions of the 787: the 787-8, which can carry up to 248 passengers over distances up to 13,530 kilometres (8,400 miles); the 787-9, carrying up to 296 passengers up to 14,010 kilometres; and the 787-10, with up to 330 passengers, up to 11,910 kilometres.
The one that went down in Ahmedabad, India, on Thursday was the 787-8 version, carrying 242 passengers and crew. It was scheduled to fly to London, but crashed shortly after taking off from the western Indian city.
Boeing said it was “aware” of the reports of the crash and was “working to gather more information”.
Setback For Boeing
Boeing’s programme for the plane had suffered several setbacks, including repeated and costly delivery suspensions between 2021 and 2023, mainly due to assembly faults and manufacturing quality issues.
The US Federal Aviation Administration ultimately reinforced quality assurance checks and inspections on the production lines.
In April this year, the FAA authorised Boeing to step up its production pace to make seven planes a month, from five previously.
In terms of sales, Boeing is facing headwinds.
The manufacturer did not deliver any aircraft to China in May, despite having received clearance from Beijing, which had previously temporarily barred Chinese airlines from dealing with the company due to the trade war initiated by the United States.
Shocking Crash
Thick black plumes of acrid smoke towered high above India’s Ahmedabad airport Thursday after a London-bound passenger jet with 242 people aboard crashed shortly after takeoff.
Police said there appeared to be no survivors, with the plane smashing into a residential area.
Several videos posted on social media showed an aircraft rapidly losing altitude — with its nose up — before it hit a building and exploded into an orange ball of fire.
Authorities said it went down outside the airport perimeter, in a crowded residential area. In contrast, an AFP reporter in the city said the plane crashed between a hospital and the city’s Ghoda Camp neighbourhood.
Terrifying final moments of Air India Flight AI 171 crashing into a residential area in Ahmedabad today. Clearly catastrophic loss of lift. Details awaited. pic.twitter.com/TbgCjPLXXc
— Shiv Aroor (@ShivAroor) June 12, 2025
Burnt Bodies
A medic described how the burning plane had smashed into a residential block that is home to medical students and young doctors.
“One half of the plane crashed into the residential building where doctors lived with their families,” said Krishna, a doctor who gave only one name, adding he saw “about 15-20 burnt bodies” in the wreckage and debris.
It was not clear whether the dead he had seen had been killed on board the plane, or had been in the building the aircraft ploughed into.
“The nose and front wheel landed on the canteen building where students were having lunch,” he said, adding he and colleagues had “rescued some 15 students from the building and sent them to the hospital”.
“When we reached the spot, there were several bodies lying around and firefighters were dousing the flames,” resident Poonam Patni told AFP.
“Many of the bodies were burned”, she added.
Another resident, who declined to be named, said: “We saw people from the building jumping from the second and third floor to save themselves. The plane was in flames.
“We helped people get out of the building and sent the injured to the hospital.”
Air India’s flight 171 — a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner bound for London’s Gatwick Airport, crashed shortly after takeoff around 1:40 pm (0810 GMT), officials said.
The passengers included 169 Indian nationals, 53 British, seven Portuguese, and a Canadian. Two pilots and 10 cabin crew were also aboard.
Massive Sound
At the crash site, firefighters could be seen trying to control flames on the burning plane debris that also charred trees.
One video, from social media but posted by the Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency, showed what appeared to be a chunk of fuselage — larger than a car — that had smashed onto the roof of a multi-storey building.
Photographs released by India’s Central Industrial Security Force, a paramilitary police force, showed a large chunk of the plane that had smashed through the brick and concrete wall of a building.
“I was at home when we heard a massive sound,” one Ahmedabad resident told PTI.
“When we went out to see what had happened, there was a layer of thick smoke in the air. When we came here, dead bodies and debris from the crashed aircraft were scattered all over.”
Outside Ahmedabad airport, a woman wailing inconsolably in grief said that five of her relatives had been aboard the plane.
Via: Agence France-Presse
