Air India flight AI171, a Boeing 787-8 carrying 242 people, crashed after taking off from Ahmedabad on its way to London.

London-bound flight AI171 crashed near Meghaninagar, Ahmedabad, killing 241 onboard; the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has recovered the black box from the crash site

Aviation explained that the answer cannot be so simple as aircraft vary a lot in terms of seat configurations, while the nature of crashes are often unique.

Airbus SE said the fatal accident on Thursday in India involving a Boeing Co. airliner should spur the industry as a whole to advance its safety culture, dismissing the notion that the crash could bring a competitive edge to one planemaker over the other in the global duopoly.