While we eagerly await the preliminary investigation report coming from the June 12th crash of, small bits of information continue to emerge. For example, the carrier’s chairman notes that one of the Boeing 787’s engines was fairly new. Due to the nature of the crash, its widely believed that a dual engine failure leading to a stall was what brought down the 787. This is yet to be confirmed, but thinking logically, an aircraft with at least one functioning engine would have been able to stay airborne.
Focus on Engine Condition and Type
The larger unknown is precisely WHY the jet’s engines failed. But focusing on those engines, the jet utilized General Electric GEnx-1B67 powerplants per data from ch-aviation. In an interview with an Indian news channel, Air India’s chairman stated that both engines of the aircraft had “clean” histories, adding: “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,”
Awaiting Black Box Insights
The chairman then states: “There are a lot of speculations and a lot of theories. But the fact that I know so far is this particular aircraft, this specific tail, AI171, has a clean history…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 flight data recorders have indeed been found and investigators are working to determine what happened.
Expert Views on Engine Age
A former investigator with India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau, speaking with the BBC, states what most people in the aviation world already know: “The age of the engine has no bearing on the health of the engine, especially for the Genx-1B engines,” Some may think that an old engine could be problematic. However, on the flip side, a brand NEW engine could be equally as problematic perhaps due to a shortcoming in the engine assembly process.
Operational History and Fleet Inspection
If the new engine was indeed installed on the 787-8 in March 2025, then the jet would have operated 120-130 flights with this powerplant. As far as we know, there were no serious technical issues with the jet in weeks leading up to the fatal accident. After performing inspections on Air India’s 787 fleet, officials confirmed that there were no major safety concerns, stating that aircraft and related maintenance systems were compliant with existing safety standards.
Operational Lapses and Disciplinary Action
That being said, it was also reported that three Air India employees would be terminated as a result of operational safety lapses. These issues were related to the licensing requirements of flight crew, rest hours, and experience required to fly an aircraft.