Boeing stock plummets after Air India plane crash

Boeing’s (BA) shares plummeted nearly 8% in premarket trading Thursday after an Air India plane carrying 242 people crashed shortly after takeoff near the Ahmedabad airport.

The plane involved was a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, delivered to Air India in 2014, according to the aviation tracking site FlightRadar24. The flight was headed to Gatwick Airport in London.

“We are aware of initial reports and are working to gather more information,” Boeing said in a statement.

India’s federal health minister said “many people” were killed in the crash, according to Reuters.

This is the first major crash involving a Boeing 787 Dreamliner since its introduction in 2011, according to a Boeing report of airplane accidents.

The crash is a major setback for the aerospace giant, which has been racking up plane orders under new CEO Kelly Ortberg. Shares are up over 20% year-to-date on the heels of a massive company turnaround following a brutal in 2024 sparked by a “door plug” incident on an Alaska Airlines (ALK) flight.

That event triggered a wave of lawsuits, government investigations, and safety and production changes — ultimately leading to a leadership overhaul.

Boeing also came under intense scrutiny in 2019, following the deadly crash of Ethiopian Airlines flight 302. That incident followed a Lion Air flight crash just five months earlier.

Both of those incidents exposed critical flaws in the software of the 737 Max 8 jet, leading to a 20-month global grounding of the aircraft.

Shares of Boeing suppliers also sank in pre-market on Thursday. GE Aerospace (GE) tumbled 4%, while Spirit AeroSystems (SPR) also declined 3%.

Ines Ferre is a Senior Business Reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on X at @ines_ferre.

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