'If It's Boeing, I'm Not Going:' Why Some People Are Turning Their Backs On The American Plane Maker In Favor Of Rival Airbus

Boeing Co. BA has been in the headlines recently for all the wrong reasons. In the aftermath of the fatal aircrash in India's Ahmedabad, when a Boeing 787 Dreamliner operated by Air India crashed into a residential area moments after takeoff, serious questions have been raised regarding the safety and quality of Boeing aircraft.

AI 171 carried over 242 people on board, including the crew, of which only one passenger survived the crash. The accident also led to dozens of lives lost on the ground. In the aftermath, Boeing released a statement saying that "a Boeing team stands ready to support the investigation led by India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau."

However, a trend emerged on social media, which signalled a shift in perspective among the consumers who were denouncing the American aircraft manufacturer following the incident.

If It's Boeing, I'm Not Going

Many users took to social media platform X to express their discontent with Boeing. "If it's boeing, i ain't going is a great heuristic to keep living life," said one social media user.

Another user shared that they would prefer Airbus SE EADSF over Boeing in a post on X. "If it's Boeing, then I am not going. If it's Airbus, then I still have trust."

This highlights growing sentiment against the plane maker, which has maintained that its aircraft are safe, among people. Let's take a closer look at some of Boeing's previous incidents.

A look at Boeing's tumultuous last few years

Boeing has been under scrutiny over the safety of its aircraft. In 2011, Boeing introduced the 787 Dreamliner with Japan's All Nippon Airways. However, the aircraft experienced multiple incidents involving the Lithium-ion batteries catching fire, which resulted in the 787 Dreamliner being grounded in 2013 by the FAA.

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Questions were raised after three separate whistleblowers came out to highlight the aircraft manufacturer’s lax production practices and called into question the safety of the aircraft. One of the whistleblowers, John Barnett, was found dead days before being a witness at a trial involving Boeing, from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Besides trouble with the 787, the 737-MAX aircraft has also experienced its share of incidents, like the 2018 Lion Air Flight 610 crash and the Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 in 2019, both of which resulted in a combined loss of over 346 lives.

Following the crashes, the FAA decided to ground the 737 MAX aircraft. Boeing was also under the DOJ radar as the agency prosecuted the aircraft manufacturer. However, Boeing avoided prosecution after a $1.1 billion agreement with the DOJ. 2024's Jeju Air Crash, which took over 179 lives, also brought Boeing under public scrutiny over its aircraft.

Boeing vs Airbus

Both Boeing and Airbus have thousands of aircraft currently in service; 14,000 and 12,000, to be exact, according to both companies. "Boeing and Airbus aircraft are fairly similar in many respects," aviation expert Bernard Lavelle told Benzinga.

"For the Boeing 737 Max series, you have the Max 8&9 currently flying and the Max 7 & 10 are awaiting approval. The Airbus equivalent is the A320/A321 series," he added.

Additionally, Airbus uses a Fly-by-wire system in its aircraft, while Boeing employs artificial speed stability with manual trim. Boeing aircraft also use a yoke for steering, while Airbus employs sidesticks, which are ergonomic but provide lesser visual feedback.

"Airbus uses ECAM (Electronic centralised aircraft monitoring) for system monitoring and provides see-and-do checklists, while Boeing uses EICAS (Engine indicating and crew alerting system), which only alerts pilots of failures," Lavelle shared.

So, is Airbus safer than Boeing?

"Statistically, there is not a huge difference in safety between Boeing and Airbus aircraft. They have had a similar number of incidents, when adjusted for the number of aircraft from both manufacturers that are in the market," Lavelle added.

Also Read: FAA Extends Program Allowing Boeing To Conduct Inspections On Agency’s Behalf

Both aircraft manufacturers have had comparable safety track records, according to Aviation Safety Network data. However, Lavelle did acknowledge the recent air crashes involving Boeing aircraft. "The challenge for Boeing is that their aircraft have been in a number of high profile incidents in the last few years," he said.

The road ahead for Boeing

While the manufacturer has been under scrutiny for its safety and quality concerns, Boeing has been making the right moves. "[Kelly] Ortberg seems to be doing the right things by tackling the culture at Boeing, getting it back to focus on safety and engineering excellence, which seemed to be lost under previous CEO’s," Lavelle shared.

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Boeing has also been making moves in the space exploration sector. However, the company's ambitions could be more difficult to realize than previously thought, as the Starliner, which is the company's flagship space vehicle, has encountered difficulties in development.

As for the AI 171 crash, black box data could point to what went wrong. "There are a lot of speculative theories out there at the moment," Lavelle said before adding that it "does appear to have been some form of power loss but as yet we do not know why." In the aftermath, however, authorities in India could ground the 787 Dreamliner fleet in the country.

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