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Air India Flight 171 crashed seconds after taking off from Ahmedabad, in western India, in June, killing all but one of the 242 people onboard, plus 19 people on the ground.
The preliminary report indicated confusion in the cockpit after the plane’s fuel switches were turned off.
Air India CEO Campbell Wilson said the carrier has embraced a “new normal” and a stepped-up safety focus.

An Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner.
Sopa Images | Lightrocket | Getty Images

LONG BEACH, Calif. — Air India CEO Campbell Wilson said the carrier has embraced a “new normal” and a stepped-up safety focus following the crash of one of its planes in June, the deadliest aviation disaster in a decade.
All but one of the 242 people on board Air India Flight 171 on June 12 were killed when the Boeing Dreamliner, bound for London, crashed seconds after takeoff from Ahmedabad in western India. Another 19 other people were killed on the ground.

A preliminary report released in July showed confusion in the cockpit when fuel cutoff switches were flipped off. The cockpit voice recording captured one pilot asking the other why he cut off the fuel and the other responding that he did not.
“The investigation is still ongoing, so I can’t comment too freely, but this has been an absolutely devastating event for the people involved, for families, for the company, for staff, and our focus over the last two months has been very much to support them in every way possible,” Wilson said at the Airline Passenger Experience Association’s conference and expo in Long Beach, California, on Tuesday.

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“We continue to work with the regulator on the investigation and ensuring that whatever learnings come about from that investigation are put into play. For the moment, the preliminary report indicates nothing wrong with the aircraft, nothing wrong with the engines, nothing wrong with the airlines operation, but we’ve taken a significant safety pause to ensure all of our practices and procedures are fully embedded, and people are fully embracing a new normal of even extra focus on safety, and the focus continues to be on the people that were affected,” he said.
Air India had been in the middle of a massive modernization effort to better compete with other carriers and gain new customers in India’s fast-growing aviation market at the time of the crash. The refresh began after Tata Group privatized the 93-year-old carrier from the government three years ago.
That revamp is continuing with new cabins and better technology, said Wilson, an airline veteran who has previously served as CEO of Scoot, Singapore Airlines’ low-cost carrier. The carrier has placed orders for some 570 aircraft.
“Once Air India was privatized [we] could adopt more normal private sector practices, could make long-term decisions, had the capital to invest,” he said.

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The IAM Union said Wednesday that it reached a tentative agreement with Boeing for better wages.
Members will vote on the agreement, which is set for five years, on Friday.
More than 3,000 IAM Union members at Boeing have been on strike since the beginning of August.

Workers picket outside the Boeing Defense, Space & Security facility in Berkeley, Missouri, US, on Monday, Aug. 4, 2025.
Neeta Satam | Bloomberg | Getty Images

The union that represents striking Boeing defense workers said Wednesday it has reached a tentative agreement with the company, subject to final voting this Friday.
The agreement, set for five years, includes better wages and restores a signing bonus, according to the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Union. Members of the union, largely based in St. Louis, Missouri, will vote on the tentative agreement on Friday morning.

Specific details of the new agreement were not immediately available. The striking workers primarily assemble and maintain F-15 fighter jets and missile systems.
More than 3,000 union members at Boeing have been on strike since the beginning of August. The employees had turned down a new contract offer, which had included 20% general wage increases and a $5,000 signing bonus, among other improvements.
The strike was the first in almost 30 years.
Before the strike, Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg said the effects of a potential walkout would not be huge.
“We’ll manage through this. I wouldn’t worry too much about the implications of the strike. We’ll manage our way through that,” he said on an earnings call at the end of July.

Earlier this month, Boeing hired an undisclosed amount of new workers to replace those in its defense unit to meet demand.
The defense strike comes after more than 32,000 unionized machinists who build commercial aircraft walked off the job for seven weeks after failed contract talks last year.
— CNBC’s Leslie Josephs contributed to this report. More

Former Milwaukee Bucks owner Marc Lasry told CNBC in an exclusive interview that he doesn’t believe L.A. Clippers owner Steve Ballmer would knowingly break NBA rules, calling him “honorable” and a “gentleman.”
Lasry’s comments about Ballmer stem from a recent report that the L.A. Clippers may have attempted to circumvent the league’s salary cap by paying star forward Kawhi Leonard through a third-party company.

Former Milwaukee Bucks co-owner Marc Lasry said he doesn’t believe L.A. Clippers owner Steve Ballmer attempted to circumvent the NBA’s salary cap by working with a third-party company to surreptitiously pay superstar Kawhi Leonard in 2021
“It’s not something I would ever believe,” Lasry told CNBC in an exclusive interview. “I’ve always found him to follow the rules and do what’s right.”

Journalist and podcast host Pablo Torre reported earlier this month that Leonard had signed a $28 million sponsorship deal with a company called Aspiration. The deal required the NBA forward to do almost nothing with Aspiration to collect the money.
Ballmer invested $50 million in Aspiration. Torre reported that sources from within Aspiration told him the purpose of the deal was for the Clippers to circumvent the league’s salary cap by paying Leonard more money off the books. The NBA has begun an investigation based on his reporting.

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Lasry said there’s always pressure to win in the NBA, but “there’s not pressure to skirt the rules.”
“In the NBA, everybody knows the rules. You follow it, and it’s because you know that if you don’t, you’re just going to get in a lot of trouble,” he said.
Ballmer and the Clippers have denied the allegations of salary cap circumvention. Aspiration filed for bankruptcy earlier this year and its co-founders have been charged with fraud.

“I think it’s probably a lot of smoke, but I don’t think there’s much there,” said Lasry.
Lasry agreed to sell his stake in the Bucks in 2023 to Cleveland Browns owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam at a $3.5 billion valuation. More

Potbelly announced it is being acquired by convenience store operator RaceTrac in a $566 million deal.
RaceTrac is a family-owned company headquartered in Atlanta operating more than 800 convenience stores across 14 states.
The deal will value Potbelly shares at $17.12 each.

Potbelly Sandwich Shop on October 3, 2015 in Louisville, Kentucky.
Raymond Boyd

Sandwich shop chain Potbelly will be acquired by convenience store operator RaceTrac in a $566 million all-cash deal, Potbelly announced Wednesday.
The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of the year. Shares of Potbelly shot up more than 30% following the announcement.

The Chicago-based Potbelly has more than 445 stores in the U.S., including franchised locations, with a goal of reaching 2,000, according to the company. RaceTrac, a family owned company headquartered in Atlanta, operates more than 800 convenience stores across 14 states.
“RaceTrac’s strategic vision including their commitment to quality align perfectly with our mission to delight customers with great food and good vibes,” Potbelly CEO Bob Wright said in a statement. “We have positioned Potbelly for accelerated franchise-led growth in recent years, and this transaction fortifies our path while delivering certain and immediate value to our shareholders.”
The deal will value Potbelly shares at $17.12 each, marking a roughly 47% premium to Potbelly’s price as of Tuesday. The company’s stock is up more than 75% this year.
Wednesday’s deal is RaceTrac’s second significant acquisition, after its 2023 deal to acquire Gulf Oil.

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U.S. startup carrier Avelo Airlines inked a deal for 50 Embraer E195-E2s, with options for 50 more.
The deal marks Brazilian plane maker Embraer’s first sale of E2 planes in the United States.
Avelo first flew in 2021 and exited a host of markets earlier this year to cut losses.

An Embraer SA E190-E2 passenger aircraft stands on display on day two of the Farnborough International Airshow (FIA) 2018 in Farnborough, U.K., on Tuesday, July 17, 2018. 
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Brazilian airplane maker Embraer has landed its first U.S. sale of its efficient but slow-selling E2 jets with a 50-plane deal from startup carrier Avelo Airlines.
Avelo first started flying in April 2021 with used Boeing 737s but has struggled and recently exited a host of cities on the West Coast. It has also turned to flying deportees for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which has sparked protests, demonstrations and backlash from some politicians.

The low-cost airline focuses on smaller cities, with a large operation out of Connecticut. On Monday, without providing a figure or an investor, Avelo announced it won the “single largest investment” since the carrier launched and said the money will be used to grow and improve customer experience. The new Embraer jets, scheduled to start arriving in the first half of 2027, represent big growth for Avelo, which has just 22 Boeing planes now, according to its website.
Avelo said the order for 50 E195-E2 planes, with options for 50 more, will help it modernize its fleet. The airline is betting that the planes’ two-by-two seating configuration and quieter cabins compared with older jets will be a hit with customers.

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While dwarfed by major U.S. plane maker Boeing and rival Airbus, Embraer is known for building regional jets that airlines rely on for thousands of flights a day for shorter routes or to smaller cities. It has also been solidly profitable for two years, while Boeing, which terminated a more than $4 billion tie-up with Embraer as it dealt with several crises, has struggled.
Despite its solid footing, Embaer’s newer, more fuel-efficient E2 jets have been outsold by similarly sized aircraft like the Airbus A220 family.
The E195-E2, the largest in that family, can seat 132 people in a single-class cabin with 31-inch seat pitch (a measure of the distance from one seat to the one behind it) or 120 people in a three-class cabin.

“The aircraft’s exceptional performance, size, and efficiency make it the perfect choice for the future growth of our scheduled service network,” said Avelo CEO Andrew Levy, former United Airlines CFO, in a news release.
The airline’s used Boeings can seat up to 189 passengers, but too much capacity can drive down fares. Struggling budget carrier Spirit Airlines, for example, lists Airbus A321Neos, with 229 seats.
One challenge with smaller jets for bigger airlines has been that the “majors regard them as a fleet complication,” said Richard Aboulafia, managing director at AeroDynamic Advisory, an industry consulting firm, since they would have to train pilots, acquire simulators and put up other costs to add to their lineups.
“The E2 has terrific economics but airlines have an irrational obsession for range they don’t need,” Aboulafia said.
Avelo’s order is worth $4.4 billion at list prices, the airline said, but that is before usual discounts. Slower-selling planes or big orders often come with significant price cuts.

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Sports Media

ESPN signed a deal with EverPass Media to distribute ESPN+ content to bars, restaurants and other commercial establishments in the U.S.
EverPass is a joint venture formed by the NFL and RedBird Capital Partners to offer live sports to businesses via streaming. TKO became an investor in 2024.
EverPass launched with offering the NFL’s Sunday Ticket package of games, which was long solely offered to businesses by DirecTV’s satellite service. It has since been bulking up with other live sports rights.

Dado Ruvic | Reuters

EverPass Media has inked a deal with Disney’s ESPN to distribute live games and other content from its ESPN+ streaming service to bars, restaurants and other commercial establishments in the U.S.
The deal bulks up EverPass’ offering of live sports streaming to businesses. EverPass already provides the NFL’s “Sunday Ticket” package, as well as all NFL games that are available exclusively on streaming services this season, such as last Friday’s matchup that was only shown on Alphabet’s YouTube.

Live sports reign supreme over most other content in attracting big audiences on both traditional TV and streaming platforms. But as viewers continue to shift toward streaming, professional leagues are increasingly signing media rights deals that see some games only offered via these services — such as Amazon’s “Thursday Night Football” package and other exclusive games.
“You have these streaming-only games on various different platforms, right? It sometimes can be tricky, even at home, to figure out where to go,” said Alex Kaplan, CEO of EverPass, in an interview. “Clearly streaming is here to stay and it’s probably going to continue to be fragmented [for the consumer]. So I think a big part of what we’re building in our value proposition is to aggregate that content.”
The multi-year agreement with ESPN marks EverPass’s biggest addition of live games since it was launched in 2023 as a joint venture between the NFL and RedBird Capital Partners. Last year, TKO, the parent company of the UFC and WWE, also became an investor.
Beginning in October, ESPN+ will be sold as a separate package to new and existing EverPass customers.
The addition of ESPN+ will come with more than 2,200 live events every year, which includes college football and basketball, the NHL, international soccer, PGA Tour Live events and coverage of other major sporting events.

In August, ESPN launched its first-ever direct-to-consumer streaming app that includes the entire suite of its traditional TV content. The unlimited plan for ESPN — the streaming app has the same name as the flagship TV Network — costs $29.99 a month or $299.99 annually.
However, the network’s deal with EverPass will solely offer content from ESPN+, the sports network’s initial streaming platform that has its own exclusive games and coverage separate from its linear TV networks. ESPN+ is now part of the flagship streaming app ESPN, and individual consumers can pay for ESPN+ content in a membership tier called ESPN select, which costs $11.99 per month or $119.99 annually.
For businesses, the service is still referred to as ESPN+ for now.
EverPass became an alternative option from DirecTV for “Sunday Ticket” games in the 2023 season. The company had acquired UPShow — a platform with tech capabilities to allow commercial establishments to stream live sports — for an undisclosed amount that year.
Prior to the acquisition, EverPass had also licensed the rights to DirecTV to continue distributing “Sunday Ticket” to commercial establishments. Until then, DirecTV had been the sole provider of the package of games to both businesses and consumers. That same season, YouTube TV took over as the rights owner of “Sunday Ticket” for consumers.
Since then, EverPass has become the streaming distributor to businesses for Comcast’s Peacock, which has included exclusive NFL games. It also offers Amazon’s Prime Video for a variety of sports outside of the NFL, and international soccer featured on Paramount+.
EverPass has become a streaming distributor for chains like Buffalo Wild Wings and Dave & Buster’s, said Kaplan, and the company is looking to grow in various ways. That could include more media rights deals, partnering with traditional pay TV providers like Charter Communications or being offered in more commercial establishments, he added.
Kaplan told CNBC that EverPass remains in discussions for adding more content with both current and potential new partners.
Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC. More

Ford rolled out a new ad campaign on Wednesday, marking the first global unification of its brand in decades.
CMO Lisa Materazzo told CNBC that the campaign, titled “Ready, Set, Ford,” focuses on the people who buy its cars rather than the cars themselves.
The new branding comes as the auto industry at large struggles with tariff uncertainty.

Courtesy: Ford Motor Co.

Ford on Wednesday rolled out a new advertising campaign that the company said will mark a “fundamental shift” in its branding strategy — and comes as the auto industry deals with major uncertainty.
The automaker’s new strategy, titled “Ready, Set, Ford,” goes beyond vehicle-first advertising, Ford said, and instead focuses on the people who buy its cars. It involves four fundamental promises: capability, passion, community and trust.

The auto industry is facing a crucial crossroads as companies deal with President Donald Trump’s tariffs and an overall consumer pullback in spending. Despite uncertainty with various sectoral tariffs, Trump’s auto tariffs have remained more or less unchanged, with a 25% tariff charge on imported cars and auto parts.
That timing, Ford Chief Marketing Officer Lisa Materazzo said, is intentional.
“The auto industry is in the midst of historic disruption. We are fortunate in the sense that Ford has an incredible 122-year history to leverage,” she said. “So because of that, we felt like there’s no better time to double down on our commitment to our brand and our consumers than now.”
Materazzo said the company engaged in extensive research ahead of the rollout, finding a common theme of uncertainty and anxiety from consumers due to a range of factors, including the political climate and the economy.
“The other thing we found is that consumers are surprisingly optimistic and resilient, especially when they feel empowered, and they’re seeking brands that help them navigate this uncertainty,” she said.

Courtesy: Ford Motor Co.

Ford has long championed its American roots and declared it’s the “most American automaker.” That identity is now crucial to the automaker’s brand, Materazzo said, and builds on its “America for America” campaign that offered employee pricing to all consumers shortly after tariffs were initially announced.
The new strategy aims to leverage Ford’s iconic brand while simultaneously signaling that the car company is entering a new era, Materazzo said. It will unify all of Ford’s global brands for the first time in decades under the new campaign, allowing the company to “represent ourselves very consistently around the globe,” she added.
“By Q1 of 2026, all of our global markets will be in market with ‘Ready, Set, Ford,'” Materazzo said. “The majority of them will do that by Q4 of this year.”
The first rollout of the ad is kicking off in conjunction with this week’s Thursday Night Football game, as the automaker aligns itself with the NFL season, one of the largest moneymakers for advertisements leading up to the Super Bowl.
During the Covid pandemic, the auto industry pulled back significantly on advertising and marketing budgets as it dealt with supply chain issues left companies without enough vehicles to sell. Many automakers returned to advertising during the NFL season last year as vehicle inventory levels returned to more normal levels.
Even as the macroenvironment signals uncertainty, Materazzo said the company is focused on continuing to deliver on its legacy and invest in its brand.
“The industry is in the middle of a transition right now. I don’t think all brands will survive, but I think those that not just survive, but thrive, will be the ones who recognize that one of their most valuable assets is their brand,” she said. “And if you don’t invest in your brand, you’re really disadvantaging your business for the long term.” More

The thirty-year job interview has concluded at last. On September 8th the Murdoch family announced that it had resolved a decades-long dispute over who will control its television and newspaper empire when Rupert Murdoch, who is now 94, dies. The upshot of a complicated deal is that Lachlan Murdoch, the third-eldest of six Murdoch children, will inherit a controlling stake in Fox and News Corp, the family firms. Their combined market value is $42bn; their combined influence—with brands including Fox News, the New York Post and Wall Street Journal—is greater still. The agreement, announced on Mr Murdoch’s 54th birthday, makes him one of the world’s most powerful people for decades to come. More