Splainer FREE: Crashing Out
Aaj ki khabar includes the Air India Dreamliner crash in Gujarat, how festivals are being weaponised and a curtain raiser to the FIFA Club World Cup. The bizarre bit: Sabrina Carpenter’s album cover.
Hello, splainer FREE subscribers! We launched a paid version of our daily headlines in January. Our splainer LITE subscribers will get: One: Extended headlines every day (For example: Everything we know about the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad, today). Two: A deep dive on a big story each month—so be sure to read our free Big Story on the Architecture biennale underway in Venice. Three: A fab pop culture explainer that keeps you clued-in and nerdy cool (For example: this explainer on the colourful history of the Cannes Film Festival). All this for Rs 99 per month only! Be sure to sign up here—and gift the sub to friends & fam.
Trump’s ICE raids trigger chaos in LA
The TLDR: Over the weekend, ICE launched sweeping raids across LA—arresting 100, sparking protests, and prompting Trump to deploy the National Guard in a move not seen since 1965. Civil rights groups called it a “oppressive and vile paramilitary” crackdown, as the White House doubled down on workplace arrests to ramp up deportations.
Written by: Aarthi Ramnath, Raghav Bikhchandani & Yash Budhwar
Dreamliner crash in Ahmedabad: Everything we know
Air India flight AI 171—headed from Ahmedabad to Gatwick airport in London—crashed moments after take-off around 1:30 pm. No one knows why. But you can see it taking off—and crashing right after here. Here is a clearer angle of the crash. And here’s a map illustrating how close the crash site is to the airport:
Flight's final moments: The final moments, as tracked by Flightradar24, were chillingly brief:
13:30 local time (08:00 GMT / 09:00 BST): Aircraft recorded on the ground (0 knots)
13:34 local time: Still on the ground, but speed picking up to 10 knots (11.5mph / 18.5km/h)
13:38 local time: Sudden climb to 625ft (190m) and 174 knots. Signal was then lost
The crash site: The plane plowed into a dining hall of a medical college hostel next door to the airport. At least four students are confirmed dead—many others have been rushed to the hospital. You can see the tail of the plane: “The plane’s back part is stuck in the dining hall, and the front hit the residential building”:
The casualty count: The flight was carrying 242 people—including twelve crew members. Those on board included 169 Indians—including former Gujarat CM Vijay Rupani—53 British nationals, seven Portuguese nationals and one Canadian. Add in victims who were eating at the dining hall, and the total death count is 269 as of now.
The sole survivor: By sheer miracle, one person—sitting in seat 11A—survived the crash. The 40-year-old British national—Vishwash Kumar Ramesh—was returning home with his brother who did not survive. According to the police, Ramesh was seated next to the emergency exit—and jumped out. He suffered ‘impact injuries’ to his chest, eyes and feet—but was able to stagger out of the debris to an ambulance nearby:
When I got up, there were bodies all around me. I was scared. I stood up and ran. There were pieces of the plane all around me. Someone grabbed hold of me and put me in an ambulance and brought me to the hospital.
And here is an unverified clip of him walking after the crash. And here he is at the hospital—where he received a visit from Home Minister Amit Shah:
The cruelest bit: Newswire IANS tweeted out the entire passenger manifest at 3:04 pm. Long before the vast majority of family members even knew of their loss. Making it even worse: the list included passport numbers. It has since been deleted.
OTOH: The newspaper Mid-Day can hardly be blamed for carrying this unfortunate front page ad—published hours before the crash:
About the plane: Yes, this plane too was a Boeing—whose aircraft have been involved in a number of catastrophic crashes—and midair mishaps (explained at great length in this Big Story). The airline had just about recovered from years of federal investigations and bad PR.
This particular craft was a Boeing 787 Dreamliner—and is 12 years old. It was among 36 Dreamliners owned by Air India—usually operated on long-haul international routes. This is the first ever fatal crash to involve the Dreamliner—which was launched 14 years ago. It recently celebrated the milestone of carrying one billion passengers. There are 1,175 Dreamliners—which have flown nearly five million flights covering more than 30 million flight hours.
But, but, but: There have been a number of concerns about the Dreamliner—despite its pristine record:
Other whistle-blowers have also raised concerns about the South Carolina factory where the Dreamliner is assembled. Among them was John Barnett, a former quality manager with almost three decades of experience at Boeing, who went public with his concerns in 2019. He and other people who had worked at the factory highlighted shoddy practices, including the improper routing of wires and manufacturing tools and debris left inside planes.
A grim footnote: Barnett later killed himself after accusing Boeing of retaliating against him. The company recently settled a lawsuit with his family.
List of probable causes: We will not know what happened until the black box data has been examined. However, as always, there are theories. Aerospace engineering expert Abhay Pashilkar points to the weight of the plane:
A plausible scenario was the plane being overloaded, he explained. This meant an incorrect estimate of the combined weight of the loaded airplane and the quantity of available fuel. This along with the external temperature determines the speed at which the plane must attain to keep rising and a misjudgment on that can cause the plane to stall and drop.
Other theories shared with BBC News include:
Rare double engine failure: "There would have been no time for [the pilot] to react if he lost both engines.”
Bird strike—since Ahmedabad airport is “notorious for birds”.
Closed plane flaps—which were not extended during take-off.
Remembering the dead: We leave you with this achingly poignant video—posted by a gay couple from Britain—Jamie Meek and Fiongal Greenlaw-Meek—right before they boarded the flight.
Reading list: BBC News has the most detailed report on the theories about the crash. New York Times and The Telegraph are best on the Dreamliner. The Hindu has more on the survivor—while The Telegraph has his account. Indian Express reports on the crew and some of the passengers who died on board.
2/7 Weaponising festivals: Twist on a communal tactic
The context: Hindutva groups—with the support of local governments—have long used festivals to target Muslims. For example, religious rallies during Hindu festivals usually end in attacks on mosques—or meat sellers…
3/7 The Club World Cup is here: Does anyone care?
The what: On Sunday, 32 football clubs will duke it out in the Club World Cup. This year’s championship is a grand revamp of a far more modest tournament—whose previous editions were held every year and involved just seven clubs…
For more in splainer LITE…
US Senator dragged out by Homeland Security
Nike’s first Indian designer label collab!
First look at Serkis’ animated take on ‘Animal Farm’
Sabrina Carpenter’s album art is not ‘woman’s best friend’
what caught our eye
business & tech
ChatGPT is the fastest-growing platform in history. Axios looks at OpenAI’s bid to dethrone Google as the default search engine.
But, as more users ditch Google for ChatGPT, a new breed of AI bots is out scouring the web—scraping pages and speed-reading content like never before.
Disney and NBCUniversal are taking Midjourney to court—accusing the AI company of copyright infringement in a joint lawsuit filed this week.
Quartz has a good read on how AI-fuelled apps are turning your wardrobe into a smart, synced style hub—knowing your size, calendar, and crop-top cravings before you do.
sports & entertainment
Mani Ratnam’s 'Thug Life' crashed at the box office on day 7—marking his first flop in a decade and Kamal Haasan’s worst single day haul yet.
WTA players can now freeze their rankings while freezing their eggs—with new rules backing fertility treatments alongside existing maternity support.
Apple’s new ‘F1: The Movie’ trailer starring Brad Pitt comes with iPhone vibrations—though the so-called ‘haptic’ thrills barely register.
The World Test Championship final remains finely poised after a rollercoaster day two. Australia are on 144-8 in their second innings with a lead of 218—earlier, captain Pat Cummins took 6 wickets to dismiss South Africa for just 138.
Wimbledon’s upping the stakes—this year’s singles champs will take home a record £3 million each, marking an 11.1% bump amid players’ growing demands for a bigger cut.
health & environment
Attention, dog owners! A new study has found these breeds are more likely to experience diarrhea serious enough for a vet visit: the Maltese, Miniature Poodle, Cavapoo, German Shepherd, and Yorkshire Terrier.
Associated Press has answers to the question every dog parent dreads: Should you let pets sleep next to you?
A new study sounds an alarm on the surprising and concerning surge in a forgotten cancer among youngsters: appendix cancer.
That daily cookie with your “balanced” lunch? A new study says it could inflame your gut and quietly nudge you toward obesity—even if the rest of your meals look clean.
meanwhile, in the world
In an unprecedented and continuing development, Israel has launched a wave of strikes on Iran’s military and nuclear sites—Netanyahu says the offensive will go on “as long as necessary.” You can follow Al Zareea’s live blog for more coverage.
Al Jazeera also has a good read on Trump’s big birthday bash-military parade in DC—raising eyebrows amid protest crackdowns in LA.
OTOH, progressive groups are staging hundreds of ‘No Kings’ rallies to counter Trump’s military parade with a show of defiance.
Russia’s crackdown on dissent rolls on—Navalny ally Leonid Volkov gets 18 years in absentia, while another Opposition figure is placed under house arrest.
A federal judge has blocked Trump from detaining Columbia student Mahmoud Khalil—calling it a violation of free speech.
Another judge has slapped down Trump’s move to deploy the National Guard in LA—calling it illegal and ordering it back under state control.
In a mass protest, Fulbright board members appointed by Biden have resigned—accusing the Trump administration of politicizing the prestigious scholarship program.
Pope Leo XIV makes his first Chinese bishop pick under the Vatican’s 2018 deal with Beijing—keeping alive one of Francis’ most divisive legacies.
meanwhile, in India
The News Minute has the deets on why Andhra’s blocking Karnataka’s Totapuri mangoes at the border.
Maheshtala burned for five hours just steps from a police station—exposing a complete collapse of intelligence and crisis response ahead of Bengal’s tense election season.
Need an immediate pick-me-up? We have all you need to keep you sane.
One: How the Scots handle cancel culture.
Two: Best part of Dakota Johnson PR: Tokyo.
Three: Slipper Theft PSA: For Dummies Goldens.
Email us over at talktous@splainer.in or just hit ‘Reply’ with your comments, suggestions and advice—or to just say hi:)
