Pilots demand grounding of Air India 787s

The Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP) on Friday called on the Civil Aviation Ministry to ground Air India’s entire Boeing 787 Dreamliner fleet and conduct thorough checks of the planes’ electrical systems, following two technical incidents in one week. The group also urged the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to order a special audit of the airline.

According to FIP, on October 9, Air India flight AI154 from Vienna to Delhi was diverted to Dubai due to major technical issues. Earlier, on October 4, flight AI117 from Amritsar to Birmingham required deployment of the Ram Air Turbine (RAT) during landing. Both incidents involved Boeing 787 aircraft.

In a letter to Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu, FIP President Captain C S Randhawa said the pilots’ body has been requesting comprehensive checks of all Boeing 787s in India since June 16, particularly focusing on electrical systems.

“The aircraft experienced failures across critical systems, including autopilots, Instrument Landing System (ILS), flight directors, and flight control systems, with no Autoland capability. Pilots were forced to fly manually at night and divert to Dubai,” the letter said. FIP noted that the pilots successfully landed the plane, commending their skill under limited automation.

The federation also highlighted the need to review the Minimum Equipment List (MEL) releases and repetitive snags on these aircraft. Air India currently operates 33 Dreamliners, while IndiGo flies some leased from Norse Atlantic.

The FIP’s demand comes in the aftermath of the June 12 crash of Air India flight AI171 to London Gatwick, which killed 260 people shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad, raising further concerns about the Dreamliner’s safety in India.