Tata Group needs to fine-tune key aspects of Air India's ops: Praful Patel

Former Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel on Friday said the Tata Group needs to fine-tune key aspects of Air India's operations, including maintenance, in the wake of the crash of its Dreamliner aircraft in Ahmedabad.

"After three-and-a-half years of the takeover of Air India by the Tatas, the management needs to fine-tune various aspects of running a world-class airline, including maintenance," Patel told reporters here.  Air India's Boeing 787 Dreamliner (AI171) carrying 242 passengers including 12 crew members crashed in the Meghaninagar area shortly after the take-off from the Ahmedabad airport on Thursday afternoon, killing 241 persons on board and others who were on the ground. The accident is being probed by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) which comes under the civil aviation ministry.  Terming the accident as a temporary setback, Patel said India's aviation sector remains largely well-managed. A Rajya Sabha MP, Patel headed the civil aviation ministry from 2004-2011 in the Manmohan Singh-led UPA Government. Tata Sons took control of the government-owned Air India in January 2022, after winning bids for the airline acquisition. "SOPs and safety norms are well in place in India's aviation growth," Patel further said.  "I don't think passengers should be scared of air travel. This is because India's overall safety standards are well-defined and DGCA keeps updating these norms in line with international norms," the NCP leader added. To a question about India's Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) capacity, Patel expressed concern over "under-utilisation" of domestic facilities.  "We have a world-class set-up, but it is surprising why some planes of Air India are sent outside the country for maintenance," he said. Stating that Boeing's MRO facility at Nagpur has a good track record, he said its services should be fully utilised. "However, the facility has been under-utilised," he remarked. On the possible cause of Thursday's crash, Patel said bird hit was a distant possibility. "Even if one of the two engines had failed, technically the plane is equipped to take off and travel the full distance....Watching the video, it seems there was no problem at the time of take-off; otherwise the pilot would have avoided it," Patel said. He noted that during his tenure as Civil Aviation Minister, Parliament enacted the law establishing the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB). "It will conduct a thorough investigation, which includes retrieving data from the Black Box as well as video recordings available on social media," he said. "While the data will be retrieved within a few months, it will take a little longer for the government to come out with a report detailing the exact reasons behind the crash," Patel added.  He expressed confidence in the functioning of the AAIB, while also confirming that foreign investigating agencies, including a Boeing team and the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), would be involved in the probe.