India States 鈥楴o Major Safety Concerns' Over Air India Boeing 787 Fleet
In a statement, the Indian Ministry of Civil Aviation has confirmed that officials held a high-level meeting with senior representatives from Air India and Air India Express, its low-cost arm. The Ministry organized the meeting to review the operational robustness of the two airlines and to ensure continued compliance with safety and passenger regulations, it said.
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In addition, the officials confirmed that following inspections of听some of听Air India鈥檚听听787 fleet, there were no major safety concerns. The aircraft and related maintenance systems were compliant with existing safety standards, the Ministry added, which were checked after the fatal听听crash on June 12th.
There Are No Major Concerns About The Safety Of Air India鈥檚 Boeing 787 Fleet
Photo:听Markus Mainka | Shutterstock
In a statement on June 17th, the Indian Ministry of Civil Aviation said that its daughter agency, the Indian Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), held a high-level meeting with officials from Air India and听听the former鈥檚 low-cost carrier subsidiary. During the session, the airline and the ministry鈥檚 officials reviewed the operational robustness of the two airlines and ensured their continued compliance with safety and passenger service regulations.
In addition, the Ministry of Civil Aviation stated that the inspections of听some of听Air India鈥檚 Boeing 787s (27 787-8s and seven 787-9s per听,听) did not听鈥渞eveal any major safety concerns.鈥澨The fleet and its associated maintenance systems were compliant with existing safety standards, the Ministry highlighted. However, its statement read that:
Stored And In-Maintenance Air India Boeing 787s
Photo:听BoeingMan777 | Shutterstock
At the same time, the Ministry disclosed that the DGCA鈥檚 mandated 鈥榚nhanced safety inspection鈥 was applicable to the airline鈥檚 whole 787 fleet, which, again, per ch-aviation records, comprises 34 787 aircraft: 27 787-8 and seven听听According to the Ministry, four are currently undergoing maintenance checks at various maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) organizations.
As of 15:00 local time (UTC +5:30) on June 17th, 24 of Air India鈥檚 787s had been inspected and passed the DGCA鈥檚 mandated checks. Two more aircraft of the type should have been inspected by the end of June 17th, and one on June 18th.听鈥淭he remaining 6 aircraft include 2 aircraft, which are presently AOG at [听听(DEL)],"听the Ministry said.
The officials鈥 statement disclosed that the checks on the six widebodies would be completed before their return to official service, while four 787s, undergoing maintenance, would be inspected before they are released from the maintenance hangars.
Post-Crash Inspections Of Air India鈥檚 Aircraft
Photo:听BoeingMan777 | Shutterstock
. Then, shortly after the aircraft took off from Ahmedabad International Airport (AMD), it failed to gain altitude and crashed into a residential area more than a kilometer (0.62 miles) away from the airport. It was the first-ever hull loss of a听787.
Out of the 242 people who were onboard, including 230 passengers, 12 crew members, including ten flight attendants, only one person survived.听, just in front of the left-hand side emergency exit, and was later discharged from hospital, according to the听Press Trust of India. An unconfirmed number of fatalities also occurred when the听听registered as VT-ANB, crashed into the complex of Ahmedabad Civil Hospital.
In an exclusive report, the听, citing people familiar with the investigation, disclosed that the aircraft鈥檚 emergency power generator was operating听. On June 14th, the Indian Ministry of Civil Aviation said that investigators had recovered the aircraft鈥檚 black box.
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