Wed, 21 Jan 2026

Wed, 21 Jan 2026 Air India crash plane had record of safety defects, campaigners claim

Campaigners say they have evidence the plane had previously suffered a series of technical failures, including a fire.

* Aviation safety campaigners in the US claim that a Boeing 787 Dreamliner that crashed in India last year had previously suffered numerous technical failures, including a fire.
* The plane, which was one of the earliest 787s built, first flew in late 2013 and entered service with Air India in early 2014.
* Documents allegedly show that the plane experienced system failures from its very first day in service for Air India, caused by engineering, manufacturing, quality, and maintenance problems.
* Failures included electronics and software faults, circuit breakers tripping repeatedly, damage to wiring, short circuits, loss of electrical current, and overheating of power system components.
* In January 2022, there was a fire in the P100 power distribution panel that required replacement.
* The Foundation for Aviation Safety's report has been sent to the US Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, which held hearings into "Boeing's broken safety culture" last year.
* The official investigation into the accident is ongoing, but an interim report published in July sparked controversy and speculation about pilot error.
* The Foundation's report alleges that Boeing's focus on electrical systems has led to problems with the 787, including a major battery fire on a plane owned by Japan Airlines in 2013.
* The report also claims that similar failures have been reported on hundreds of other 787s worldwide.
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