Air India's first refurbished Boeing 787-8 aircraft has landed in Delhi, marking a milestone in the airline's USD 400 million investment plan to upgrade its wide-body fleet. The aircraft features comprehensive interior upgrades, including new seats and in-flight entertainment systems.
Air India is undertaking a $400 million programme to modernise its legacy fleet, with plans to complete the retrofit of its entire Boeing 787-8 fleet by the first quarter of 2028 and its Boeing 777 fleet by 2029.
Air India replaced the Throttle Control Module (TCM) of the crashed Boeing 787-8 plane twice in the last six years following a directive from Boeing in 2019, sources said on Sunday. The replacement of the TCM twice -- in 2019 and 2023 -- was mentioned in the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau's (AAIB) preliminary probe report into the crash that was released on Saturday.
Air India is upgrading its fleet of Boeing 787-8 aircraft, crucial for its long-haul operations, with retrofitting expected to be completed by early 2028. The airline has already received its first retrofitted plane, featuring a three-class configuration.
The senior official of Air India said that no adverse findings have been reported on the aircraft for which this re-inspection was completed, he said in the email sent to B787 pilots.
Air India's entire European operations are carried out with Boeing Dreamliner planes.
The UK's Civil Aviation Authority is investigating a fuel control switch issue on an Air India Boeing 787-8 at Heathrow Airport. The incident occurred before a flight to Bengaluru, prompting scrutiny from both UK and Indian aviation regulators.
In a statement, the airline said it has completed precautionary re-inspections of the Fuel Control Switch (FCS) across all operational Boeing 787 aircraft in its fleet.
Pilots' grouping FIP has suggested that the AAIB should investigate whether a 'pre-lift off electrical disturbance' could have led to the Air India Dreamliner crash in June last year, which resulted in 260 fatalities.
Air India grounded a Boeing 787-8 after a pilot reported a potential fuel control switch defect. The incident occurs amidst an ongoing investigation into the airline's Dreamliner crash last June.
The Supreme Court dismissed a petition related to the preliminary investigation report on the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad, questioning the petitioner's motives and agenda.
Union Minister Murlidhar Mohol refutes a foreign media report regarding the Air India AI171 plane crash investigation, emphasizing that the probe is ongoing and trusting Indian agencies.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation has directed Air India to carry out additional maintenance actions on its Boeing 787-8 and 787-9 planes equipped with Genx engines with immediate effect.
The Boeing 787-8 aircraft -- VT-ANB -- was 11.5 years old and had flown for more than 41,000 hours, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium.
Aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Tuesday said Air India's Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, which faced fuel control switch glitch, took off from London on February 1 after the crew carried out a physical check of the switch and that no abnormal parameters were observed during start of the engine or thereafter.
Air India completed inspections of fuel control switches on its Boeing 787 planes following a DGCA directive after a preliminary report on a recent crash. No issues were found.
'We have been insisting that all Boeing 787 aircraft be grounded and checked for the electrical systems.'
The DGCA has asked airlines to inspect the fuel switch locking system in their Boeing 787 and 737 planes after a preliminary probe report into the Air India crash found that the switches were cut off before the accident.
Turkish officials on Sunday denied claims that the crashed Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner had undergone maintenance by Turkish Technic, calling such allegations 'false' and 'disinformation'.
The lawsuit has compensatory and punitive damages against the defendants for the wrongful deaths of four passengers on flight 171, US-based law firm The Lanier Law Firm said in a statement.
The panel, chaired by the home secretary, is expected to submit its report in three months.
Air India's ill-fated Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner that crashed soon after take off from Ahmedabad airport on June 12 underwent comprehensive maintenance checks in June 2023 and was due for the next scheduled comprehensive checks in December this year, according to airline officials.
The Tata Group has begun scouting for a suitable candidate to head Air India, as the tenure of the incumbent, Campbell Wilson, will end next year, sources have said. Meanwhile, the Group is also looking to appoint a new managing director for its low-cost subsidiary Air India Express.
Six months after the Air India AI-171 plane crash in Ahmedabad, the site remains a haunting reminder for local residents, marked by charred remains and lingering memories of the tragic event.
The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft that went down soon after take-off was operating the flight 'AI 171' from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick.
The civil aviation ministry on Monday said all probable causes leading to the Air India plane crash in June last year are being investigated, and all efforts are being made to complete the probe in a time-bound manner.
An Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner experienced an uncommanded deployment of its Ram Air Turbine (RAT) shortly before landing. The DGCA is investigating the incident, raising safety concerns.
Air India Group expects to induct 26 wide-body and narrow-body planes, and operate 81 per cent of its international flights with upgraded aircraft by the end of 2026, while overall capacity will remain almost unchanged next year.
Events from mid-2025 to early 2026 exposed deeper systemic concerns for India's aviation safety architecture.
In a statement on Friday, AISATS said it has taken "firm disciplinary action" against the people responsible for the party but did not disclose specific details.
The Centre informed the Supreme Court that the Air India pilot has not been blamed in the AAIB's preliminary report into the June 12 plane crash that claimed 260 lives. The court is hearing a plea for a parallel inquiry into the accident.
Air India has confirmed that 241 people on board its London-bound flight were killed when the aircraft crashed shortly after takeoff from the Ahmedabad airport on Thursday.
It will be too premature to draw conclusions on the role of pilots from the preliminary investigation report into the fatal crash of Air India plane last month and the final report will mention about the most probable cause for the accident, former Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) chief Aurobindo Handa said on Sunday.
The 15-page report recommends no action to the Boeing 787-8 and/or the General Electric GEnx-1B engine operators and manufacturers.
In a message to flyers, the Air India chief also said the 15 percent reduction in Air India's international wide-body fleet operations for the next few weeks is a temporary move.
The flight had departed after a delay of almost 3.5 hours as its scheduled departure was at 8.50 am, as per flight tracking website flightradar24.com.
The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) team probing last year's fatal Air India plane crash is examining certain components of the aircraft and assessing various aspects, and 'nothing has been ruled out' in terms of the factors that could have led to the accident that killed 260 people, according to a source.
According to a source, the flight was to be operated with a Boeing 787-9 plane.
Air India announced the resumption of its non-stop flights between Delhi and Shanghai (PVG), effective from February 1, 2026, marking Air India's return to mainland China after nearly six years, an official statement by the airline stated.
At Ahmedabad's Civil Hospital, DNA samples from over 190 relatives are being matched with victims of the Air India crash, a process expected to take up to 72 hours.
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