• An Air India Boeing 787 crashed less than a minute after takeoff on Thursday.
• The crash comes as both Boeing and Air India are trying to turn themselves around.
• Attorneys and aviation experts said no conclusions could be drawn until the investigation ended.

Thursday's fatal crash of an Air India Boeing 787 shortly after takeoff comes as both the airline and Boeing try to revive their public images.

After 2024 became an annus horribilis for Boeing, 2025 is crucial for the planemaker to show it is successfully overhauling its processes.

CEO Kelly Ortberg, who took over last year and has made the turnaround the centerpiece of his leadership, has scrapped plans to travel to next week's Paris Air Show, CNBC and Bloomberg reported. The event is a crucial industry showcase. Neither Boeing nor Air India responded to requests for comment from Business Insider.

On Thursday, Ortberg shared the company's "deepest condolences" to everyone affected and said a team stood ready to support the investigation.

After visiting the crash site Friday morning, Air India CEO Campbell Wilson said in a video statement, "We know that the investigations will take time but we will be fully transparent and will support the process for as long as it takes."

"Air India will continue to do everything we can to care for those affected by this tragedy, and to uphold the trust placed in us," he added.

'The crash derails Boeing stock's positive momentum'

When an Alaska Airlines 737 Max lost a door plug during a January 2024 flight, regulators capped Boeing's production of the type. A seven-week strike then shut down key facilities, further hurting revenue.

Boeing ended 2024 as the Dow Jones' biggest loser, as its share price fell 31%. Investors had been reassured by Ortberg's work to turn the company around, and the stock had risen more than 20% in 2025 before the crash.

It dropped about 4% after Thursday's crash and fell more than 3% Friday morning.

Morgan Stanley analysts said Thursday that the crash "derails the positive momentum on Boeing's stock."

Jeff Windau, a senior industrials analyst for Edward Jones, said in a research note that he expects near-term volatility and raised the possibility of enhanced scrutiny on Boeing's processes.

"However, at this time, we do not feel there will be a long-term impact to production," he added.

Air India has been working to turn itself around

Following decades of state ownership and huge losses, Air India was acquired by the Tata Group in 2022. The airline has expanded with hundreds of additional flights, flying 60 million customers to 103 destinations through 2024.

The new owners invested billions, and the airline has ordered hundreds of planes to replace its aging fleet.

In a December interview with BI, Wilson compared his work revitalising Air India to "drinking from a firehose."

He added that he thought the turnaround was close to completion, but said there were supply-chain constraints. "Until we upgrade the aircraft, then people won't believe that the transformation has happened," Wilson said.

Alan Tan, an aviation law professor at the National University of Singapore, told BI that Air India in particular would have an immediate hit to customer perception.

"But as other leading airlines facing crises have shown, these are not insurmountable," he added. "Transparency and accountability in investigations, and consistent messaging to the public, will hopefully reduce the risks of a media spectacle."

A lengthy investigation

It will take a thorough and lengthy investigation before there are answers about what caused the crash.

Attorneys who have battled Boeing in the courts were among the people BI spoke to who were hesitant to draw any conclusions.

"The fact that this tragedy involves a Boeing aircraft does not necessarily mean that there's something wrong with the actual aircraft — as distinguished from issues surrounding maintenance, or even products that are not Boeing's, such as the engines," said Robert Clifford, lead counsel for the families of victims of the 2019 Ethiopian Airlines crash, in which a 737 Max crashed shortly after takeoff, killing more than 150 people.

He added that a quick and efficient investigation is necessary to "help calm the public."

Thursday's incident was the first fatal crash and total hull loss of a Boeing 787 Dreamliner, one of the most advanced passenger jets, which entered service in 2011.

The model has faced some criticism from whistleblowers. Last year, Sam Salehpour, a quality engineer at Boeing, told NBC he observed "shortcuts to reduce bottlenecks" in manufacturing 787s. Boeing responded that it was "fully confident in the 787 Dreamliner."

On Thursday, Salehpour's attorneys urged the Federal Aviation Administration to release a report investigating his claims.

Richard Aboulafia, managing director at Aerodynamic Advisory, told BI, "It's a terrible tragedy, but I just don't see how this impacts anything [for Boeing]."

"Unless it's the unlikely event that they do find a design or manufacturing flaw, but after all these years, both for this type of aircraft and this particular aircraft, that's not normal," he added.

• Coach's bet on bag charms is paying off.
• The CEO of Coach's parent, Tapestry, said the brand's bag charms and straps contributed to its success.
• She said Coach's $95 Cherry Bag Charm was a "Gen Z favourite."

Coach is known for its handbags, but its little dangly keychains and trinkets are boosting its business, too.

The CEO of Coach's parent company, Tapestry, Joanne Crevoiserat, spoke in an earnings call on Thursday about the success of bag charms.

"Our bag charms and straps added to our success, providing consumers with further opportunities for self-expression, with the 'Cherry Bag Charm' remaining a Gen Z favorite," Crevoiserat said to investors.

Bag charms vary largely in size and form, from miniature stuffed toys and toy figurines to beaded chains. Style experts BI previously spoke with said charms function as a way to express the wearer's identity and personality.

Coach has a wide selection of charms, ranging from $20 for a simple bow charm to $195 for the spider bag charm. It also sells a collection of metallic chains that can be hooked onto bag straps.

The Cherry Bag Charm, which Crevoiserat called a "Gen Z favorite," retails on Coach's website for $95.

Crevoiserat's comments come as retail brands have been betting big on bag charms to win the support of younger customers. Brands from KFC to Balenciaga have released bag charms — either in the form of limited edition drops or permanent collections.

Crevoiserat said nearly 70% of Coach's 900,000 new customers in North America were Gen Z and millennials.

Representatives for Tapestry did not respond to a query from Business Insider on the amount of sales the bag charms brought in in the latest quarter.

Tapestry reported a 7% revenue increase in its latest quarter earnings compared to the year before, with $1.58 billion in sales.

Coach, in particular, saw a 13% year-on-year growth, with sales of more than $1.29 billion. The brand has 324 stores in the US and 599 internationally.