Air India Strengthens Safety Measures for Boeing 787 Dreamliners
Inspections and Flight Updates
Sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik creates a sculpture honoring victims of the Air India plane crash, at the beach in Puri, Odisha. (PTI Photo)
Air India has finished thorough safety checks on 22 of its Boeing 787 planes. This comes after a recent crash. The airline owns 33 Dreamliners. The first one joined the fleet in 2012. The plane involved in the incident had been flying since 2014.
DGCA’s Directives
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) told Air India to carry out extra safety checks. These checks include:
- Checking specific take-off settings
- Testing electronic engine controls
- Inspecting engine fuel systems
Flight Updates
Air India sources told ET that the checks did not find major problems. Still, some flights had to be canceled. These included trips to Sydney and Melbourne.
An Air India official said, “We canceled flights for a few reasons. The safety checks took longer than we thought. Also, Iranian airspace closed.”
Regional Issues and Flight Paths
Airlines have been avoiding parts of the Middle East since Friday. This is due to strikes between Israel and Iran. These tensions have changed some flight paths.
What Happened
Indian aviation officials shared details at a Saturday meeting. They said Captain Sumeet Sabharwal made a distress call. He did this soon after leaving Ahmedabad airport at 1.39 PM on Thursday.
Aviation ministry secretary Samir Kumar Sinha explained that air traffic control heard the pilot’s mayday call. But they got no answer. The plane crashed moments later.
Government’s Next Steps
After the Air India Boeing 787 accident, the government plans to update its aviation safety rules. A team, led by the home secretary, will handle this.
Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu said on Saturday that this team will look at current safety steps. They will also suggest ways to stop similar accidents. This review is separate from the official investigation by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB).
Naidu added, “This is a big step forward in the investigation. It will greatly help the inquiry into the incident.”
More Information
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