Boeing and Tata Sons Discuss Tragic Air India Flight AI171 Crash

Mumbai, Jun 17 (PTI) - Stephanie Pope, Head of Commercial Airplanes at Boeing, met with Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran at the Air India headquarters in Gurugram on Monday, according to a source. Details of the meeting were not disclosed, but the discussion focused on the crash involving Air India's London-bound flight AI171, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, in Ahmedabad last week. Over 270 people tragically lost their lives in this incident on June 12. The flight, carrying 242 passengers and crew, crashed into a medical college complex less than a minute after takeoff. The aircraft had taken off at 1:39 pm, and seconds later, after reaching approximately 650 feet, the pilot issued a May Day call to the Ahmedabad ATC.

Boeing declined to provide comments about the meeting between Pope and Chandrasekaran. A Boeing spokesperson stated, "We are not going to comment on that. Our thoughts are with the loved ones of all those affected by Air India Flight 171. We are focused on supporting the investigation and our customer." Air India representatives were unavailable for comments. Chandrasekaran visited the Air India headquarters and training academy on Monday, addressing around 700 employees and the leadership team in light of the crash.

Sources quoted Chandrasekaran as saying, "I have seen a considerable number of crises in my career, but this is the most heartbreaking one, something I never imagined I would witness." He encouraged employees to demonstrate resilience and use this tragic incident as a catalyst to build a safer airline.