Fake Air India Crash News Sends Boeing (NYSE:BA) Stock Soaring—Wall Street Bites the Bait Again

Rumors of an Air India crash—later debunked—sent Boeing shares on a wild ride today. Here’s how misinformation moved markets.

Headline Hysteria, Trader Turbulence

A single unverified report triggered algorithmic panic buying before the truth grounded the frenzy. No wreckage. No casualties. Just another day in speculative trading.

The Cynical Take

Wall Street’s bots bought first and asked questions never—proving yet again that in modern markets, speed beats accuracy every time.

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Reports emerged noting that the “Air India Boeing 787 crash that killed 270 people,” was caused by a “faulty locking mechanism” in the captain’s seat. Apparently, the report noted, when this happened, the pilot accidentally pulled the throttle levers to idle when he slid backward, and an attempt to recover from the co-pilot was, somehow “…blocked by the captain’s reclined position.” The plane, the report noted, then “…caused the plane to stall and crash into a nearby building….”

On the surface, this might mesh well with what we know, especially with reports about the plane’s Ram Air Turbine (RAT) deploying, which suggests a loss of power. And several other reports went with this data as well. But other reports, including one from Digiteye India, consider this a “misrepresentation.” The report notes that no “preliminary report” has yet been issued, certainly not one that cites seating errors as a cause. Digiteye also suggests that the reports of seat failure are being conflated with a LATAM Airlines flight from March 2024 in which something similar actually did take place.

Calling In Some Help

Meanwhile, Boeing—seeking to avoid another black eye in the making—is looking to get its Air Force One development up and running faster. In aid of that, Boeing has called in Steve Sullivan, former Northrup Grumman (NOC) strike division vice president and division leader of the group that came up with the B-2 bomber.

Sullivan will now lead the VC-25B program, taking over for Greg Coffey, who now will be tasked with the air dominance division at Boeing and developing the next Air Force training jet of choice. Sullivan will have quite a task on his hands as the plane in question is now at least one entire presidential administration overdue. Given that reports put the plane out for a delivery date of somewhere between 2027 and 2029, anything Sullivan can do to speed up the process will likely prove welcome.

Is Boeing a Good Stock to Buy Right Now?

Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Strong Buy consensus rating on BA stock based on 16 Buys, three Holds and one Sell assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 8.98% rally in its share price over the past year, the average BA price target of $221.56 per share implies 9.38% upside potential.

Disclosure