Air India plane crash: No red flags or maintenance issue — N Chandrasekaran says ‘Dreamliners have been operating…’

Tata Sons Chairman N. Chandrasekaran on Wednesday said there were no red flags with the Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft before the tragic Air India plane crash that claimed over 270 lives .

Chandrasekaran's remarks comes almost a week after the tragic Air India plane crash that killed 241 out of the 242 passengers and cabin crew on board, as well as residents of the building that the aircraft crashed into.

“There were no red flags or maintenance issues (with Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft),” he was quoted as saying during an interview with Times Now.

“There are a lot of speculations and lot of theories. But the fact that I know so far is this particular aircraft, this specifical tail, AI-171 has a clean history. As for the engines, the right engine was a new engine put in March 2025. The left engine was last serviced in 2023 and due for its next maintenance check in December 2025. Both engine histories are clean,” he said.

Boeing Dreamliners have been operating for a long time now, he added.

“Dreamliners have been operating for a long time,” Chandrasekaran said, adding, “Safety concerns have never been raised.”

Air India was taken over by the Tata Group in 2022 after the Centre put the company up for bid.

The Tata Sons Chairman said he has asked aircraft maker Boeing and engine manufacturer GE Aerospace to tell the company if there are any issues with any aircraft made by them.

“We have asked Boeing and GE (Aerospace) to tell us if there are any issues with any aircraft,” Chandrasekaran said.

Have to wait to know reason of Ahmedabad plane crash: Tata Sons Chairman

When specifically asked about the reason for the crash and whether Air India is privy to any preliminary findings, Chandrasekaran said, “One would have to wait for the probe to conclude.”

Chandrasekaran in the interview further revealed that a preliminary report of the June 12 Air India plane crash is expected in 30 days.

Deeply regret Air India crash: Chandrasekaran

The Air India Chairman “apologised” for the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad last week that claimed more than 270 lives.

“It is an extremely difficult situation where I have no words to express to console any of the families of those who died,” he said in the interview.

Chandrasekaran stressed that the Tata Group will do everything to support the families of victims.

“I deeply regret that this accident happened in a Tata-run airline. And I feel very sorry. All we can do is to be with the families at this time, grieve with them and we will do everything to support them at this hour and beyond,” he was quoted as saying.

Tata Sons Chairman on Air India pilots

Asked about speculations around human error being the reason of the Air India crash, Chandrasekaran said that both the pilots were ‘exceptional’.

“Both pilots were exceptional. Captain Sabharwal had more than 11,500 hours of flying experience, the first officer Clive (Kundar) had more than 3400 hours of flying experience,” he said.

“What I hear from colleagues is that they were excellent pilots and great professionals. So, we can't jump to any conclusions. I am told by all the experts that the black box and recorders will definitely tell the story. So, we just have to wait for that,” the Air India chairman added.