The tragic incident of Air India’s London bound flight from Ahmedabad which left 241 passengers, and many on the ground dead, has left the entire world in a state of shock. While the cause of the crash is yet to be determined, the incident is a bad advertisement for the airlines, the Boeing company and experts who may have set the flying coordinates on the computer.
There are already voices which are accusing Air India of negligence and are putting the blame squarely on the Tatas, who had taken over the loss making and sick airline nearly three years ago. The allegation is that the Tatas have been cutting corners to minimize losses, and thus the efficiency as well as maintenance has deteriorated.
On the other hand, conspiracy theorists are claiming that it was a case of sabotage and the Turkish company which was responsible for ground handling and whose services were discontinued, could be responsible for this unfathomable tragedy.
There are multiple aviation analysts, who seem to have already made up their mind to absolve the Boeing company and are trying to create a perception that it was nothing else but pilot error. All this is happening even before the probe has commenced, and it is obvious that if structural faults were detected in the Dreamliner, the first to have met such a fate, the Boeing company would face a massive loss of face. The shares of the company fell by five percent on the day of the incident.
Another reality is that the cause of the plane coming down would be crucial to all the stakeholders, particularly, the Boeing company, which is the manufacturer, the Air India, which is the carrier and the insurance firms involved with the operation. Either of the three is bound to suffer heavily once the reason is pinpointed and international experts who are here, would never allow any facts to be brushed under the carpet. Even the families of those who perished both in the aircraft and on the ground would want to know the cause to have a proper closure.
The Congress has demanded a judicial probe, which is fine for an opposition party to ask for, but till those who are experts at such an investigation come out with their findings, no judge can speak on the matter. With no disrespect to the judiciary, judges would be ill-equipped to deal with the investigations, and it is only experts, who can come out with the truth. In addition, a judicial probe may delay matters.
Without attempting to absolve any of the stakeholders, it is unfair to put the blame squarely on Air India at the very beginning. The airline, which was amongst the best at one time, has been under a lot of scrutiny for the number of complaints which have been flagged by travellers.
It needs to be understood that Air India lost its primary status amongst international carriers after it failed to compete with the best. It was up there when there was no Singapore Airlines, no Emirates and many such carriers. Once the competition became stiff, the airline, which was overstaffed and had a liability of over Rs 70,000 crore, was unable to cope. The strong unions and employees being hired because of considerations other than merit, had affected its performance.
The Tatas, known for due diligence, were reluctant to buy this sick entity, but it was only on the insistence of Rattan Tata that the board agreed to take over the airline, which once had belonged to this corporate house but had been acquired by the Central government.
The short point is that for the Tatas or anyone else, to turn around an airline so quickly is impossible. It shall certainly take about a decade or so, given the international competition. However, if there is any complicity in negligence on part of the airline management, which led to the crash, it would be unpardonable.
The Boeing company has an impeccable record so far as the Dreamliner is concerned. There are several whistle blowers who have questioned the compromise of standards so far as the manufacturing issues were concerned, particularly at the plant at South Carolina. In aviation history, Boeing is amongst the best and there is no question regarding that. Nevertheless, many experts, perhaps at its behest or for unknown reasons, are giving early diagnosis of the crash, even before the data from the black box and other sources has been properly examined. This is dangerous.
Yes, the company will lose a lot if something that points to a manufacturing defect is discovered and thus would be happy to see analysts do finger pointing at the pilot, who incidentally was amongst the most experienced to fly this particular aircraft.
The conspiracy angle of the erstwhile Turkish company which came into the news following Operation Sindoor, when Turkey was seen supporting Pakistan, has to be established if there is any such thing. This firm has only Indians as its employees, and to insinuate against someone without a probe is unfair. Allow the inquiry to be complete. The experts shall also be looking at the computer coordinates and all other aspects. Between us.
