Air India to reduce international widebody aircraft operations by 15%; Dreamliner safety checks under way
NEW DELHI: Air India will reduce its international widebody operations by 15% over the next few weeks to facilitate enhanced safety checks of its Boeing 777 aircraft, the airline announced on Tuesday.
In an official statement, Air India described the move as a 'precautionary measure' and clarified that recent flight cancellations and delays are not solely due to technical faults. The airline attributed the disruptions to a combination of operational constraints, regulatory crew duty limits, weather disturbances, and environmental hazards.
Air India is facing widespread operational disruptions after last week's tragic crash of a Boeing 787 Dreamliner in Ahmedabad that killed at least 270 people, including 241 passengers and crew.
The aftermath has triggered intensified safety inspections, leading to flight delays, cancellations, and mounting passenger anxiety.
India's aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), ordered precautionary inspections of the Dreamliner fleet following the June 12 crash of a London-bound flight. The checks, combined with airspace closures in parts of the Middle East due to ongoing regional tensions, have strained Air India's operations both domestically and internationally.
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'The airline is conducting an even greater number of checks than required,' said a company executive, who requested anonymity. 'It's impacted operations across the board.'
So far, Air India has cancelled 83 wide-body flights, including 66 operated by Dreamliners, DGCA data confirmed. Among these were international flights such as Ahmedabad–London Gatwick and Delhi–Paris, with the latter grounded due to an unspecified issue flagged during pre-flight checks.
In a statement Tuesday, DGCA said surveillance of the Dreamliner fleet has not revealed any major safety concerns. Of the 33 Dreamliners, 24 have completed checks, four are in long-term maintenance, and the remaining aircraft are expected to be cleared soon.
DGCA also directed the airline to:
Strictly adhere to safety regulations
Strengthen coordination between engineering, ground handling, and flight ops
Ensure timely availability of spare parts to reduce delays
Investigations into the crash are underway, led by India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) with technical support from the UK, US, and Boeing.
Despite the operational setbacks, experts believe this will not derail Air India's transformation under the Tata Group, which acquired the carrier in 2022 for $2.4 billion, returning it to private ownership after nearly 70 years.
'There can be no looking back,' said Jitender Bhargava, former Executive Director at Air India. 'The key now is to rebuild passenger confidence quickly.'
Since the takeover, Air India has:
Ordered hundreds of new aircraft worth over $70 billion
Refurbished dozens of legacy planes
Introduced new branding and livery
Absorbed Vistara, AirAsia India, and Air India Express
Set up one of South Asia's largest aviation training academies
Bhargava added, 'The faster you make people forget this one-off accident, the better it is.'
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