With the Boeing 787 inspections raising no red flags, attention now turns to the recovered black box to determine the factors leading to the Air India plane crash on June 12.
The oversight of Air India’s Boeing 787 fleet has not indicated “any significant safety issues” to date, the Indian civil aviation authority, Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), stated on Tuesday evening. The DGCA further noted that “the aircraft and related maintenance systems were found to adhere to current safety regulations.”
Air India flight AI 171, traveling from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick, tragically crashed shortly after take-off last week, resulting in the deaths of 241 out of the 242 individuals onboard.
Following this incident, India mandated safety inspections on the 787-8 and 787-9 aircraft the previous week.
During his first press conference since the crash, Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu emphasized that India upholds robust safety oversight protocols.
The airline operates a fleet of 26 Boeing 787-8 aircraft and has also incorporated seven Boeing 787-9s following its merger with Vistara. These aircraft play a crucial role in Air India’s services,
facilitating long-haul flights to destinations such as Melbourne, Washington D.C., Tokyo, Nairobi, and much of Europe.
The DGCA instructed Air India to carry out a one-time examination of these aircraft prior to any departures from India, which includes inspections of the engines, cabin air compressors, take-off parameters, and other aspects.
In response to the DGCA’s directive, Air India announced on Saturday that it was performing these inspections on the fleet as they returned to India, ensuring they were thoroughly checked before being cleared for subsequent flights.
Nevertheless, the safety inspections are still ongoing. The DGCA reported that as of Tuesday afternoon, the necessary checks had been completed on 24 aircraft, while four planes were undergoing “major inspections” at various maintenance and repair facilities.
DGCA Evaluates Air India Operations
On Tuesday, the DGCA disclosed that it convened a high-level meeting with Air India and its budget subsidiary Air India Express to assess the “operational robustness” of the airlines.
During this meeting, the DGCA urged Air India to enhance its internal coordination processes and to make sufficient arrangements to prevent delays stemming from maintenance activities.
This comes in light of several flights being delayed in recent days due to these checks, including those from Delhi to Pune and Delhi to Zurich.
In a prior communication, Air India had already alerted passengers about possible delays resulting from the inspections, stating, “Some of these checks could result in lengthier
turnaround times and potential delays on specific long-haul routes, particularly those leading to airports with operating curfews.”
The aviation regulatory authority also addressed the recent airspace closures over Iran, instructing airlines to ensure effective communication with passengers and crew regarding diversions, delays, and cancellations. Additionally, it advised Air India to consider alternative routes to reduce disruptions.
The DGCA has mandated enhanced inspections that encompass a one-time pre-departure examination of aircraft systems and parameters, which include monitoring fuel parameters and related systems, the cabin air compressor and its associated systems, the electronic engine control system, the engine’s fuel-driven actuator and oil system, the hydraulic system’s serviceability, and the parameters necessary for take-off. Furthermore, an inspection of flight controls is to be added to transit checks until further notice. Additionally, power assurance checks have also been required. On Saturday, Air India announced that these inspections were underway and notified passengers that some of them might “result in longer turnaround times and possible delays on certain long-haul routes, particularly those to airports with operating curfews.”
As per data provided by MoCA, Air India operated a total of 55 flights utilizing wide-body aircraft on Tuesday up until 6 pm, while 16 flights were cancelled. Out of the 16 cancelledflights, 13 were scheduled to be operated by Boeing 787 aircraft. Air India’s Boeing 787 fleet completed 30 flights on Tuesday by 6 pm. Since Thursday, 66 flights operated by the 787 have been cancelled, while the total number of flights conducted stands at 248.
In light of the recent closures of airspace, especially in West Asia, which have been causing delays, diversions, and cancellations, the DGCA instructed Air India and Air India Express to maintain timely communication with passengers and crew and to implement alternative routing strategies to reduce disruptions. The closures in airspace have impacted flights traveling from India to various regions in West Asia, Europe, and North America.
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