The recent crash of an Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner in Ahmedabad has prompted widespread discussion about potential causes. As an expert with a background in aircraft design, I would not attempt to speculate on the cause of the incident. We should wait for the crash investigators to carry out a rigorous analysis.
Instead, I will explain the various flight scenarios currently being discussed in the public domain, and explore what each of them implies from the perspective of aircraft design and performance.
Understanding how such factors interact with aircraft systems and flight performance can shed light on how modern aircraft are designed to handle rare but critical situations.
