Air India's transformation is now like being on the morning of the fifth day of a cricket Test match as the heavy lifting has been done, the airline's chief Campbell Wilson has said. The loss-making Air India, which was privatised in January 2022, has been facing various headwinds and when asked about profitability, the CEO and MD said "some unexpected events" have impacted the airline's performance. Air India is in the process of revamping its fleet, which currently stands around 190 planes. In January, the airline took delivery of its first Boeing 787-9 aircraft after privatisation. To a PTI query on the transformation journey, Wilson, who is from New Zealand, said, "Clearly, I think we are may be (in) the morning of the fifth day (of cricket Test match)". A Test match is played over five days. "There is a lot of aircraft that need to go through the refit process. But that's now a mechanical process. We just need the seats to be manufactured, delivered, installed. "All of the .
It is an exciting time for Air India and the changes will manifest in the air as well as on the ground this year, the airline's chief Campbell Wilson said as the Tata Group-owned carrier opened its new lounge at the Delhi airport. The airline will also be opening lounges in San Francisco, New York and other cities. Spread across 16,000 square feet, the Maharaja Lounge at the Delhi airport can accommodate around 300 guests in 'Business' and 'First Class' sections. In a brief interaction with PTI after the opening of the lounge on Thursday evening, Wilson said it is an "exciting time" for Air India and 2026 is the year when the changes will "really manifest in the air" and on the ground as he mentioned about retrofit of wide-body planes. "By the end of this year we'll have about half, a little bit more than half of our wide-body aircraft upgraded to a new standard. It will take another 18-24 months beyond that to complete the rest of the fleet (upgrade)... but increasingly we will ha
According to the government, 754 aircraft from six scheduled airlines were examined for repeated technical snags from January last year till February 3 this year
The crew decided to fly to India, where the pilot reported a possible "defect" on landing, forcing the grounding of the plane for checks
Air India said in a statement it had completed a precautionary re-inspection of the switches and found no issues, and would 'respond to the UK regulator accordingly'
A fuel switch scare on an Air India Dreamliner renews focus on Boeing's safety record, as data shows rising incidents and powerplant-related failures globally
Airline says precautionary re-inspections were carried out after a pilot's observation and that it will circulate Boeing's operating guidance to crew
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Following the incident, both aircraft were taken back to their respective bays for inspection. Officials from the DGCA's Mumbai office have reached the site to assess the situation and conduct further
DGCA says inspections found no issue with fuel control switches on an Air India Boeing 787-8 after pilots flagged abnormal movement during engine start in London
Air India flight AI 2732, bound for Coimbatore, was stationary on the taxiway when an IndiGo aircraft taxiing after landing made contact with its wingtip, officials said
An Air India pilot on Monday reported that a Boeing 787's left engine fuel control switch failed to stay locked in the "Run" position during two engine start attempts and shifted toward "Cutoff"
Air India has ordered precautionary inspections of fuel control switches across its Boeing 787 fleet after a pilot reported abnormal behaviour in a left engine switch on one aircraft
Fuel control switches were a key factor in last year's Air India 787 crash
An Air India pilot on Monday flagged a possible defect with the fuel control switch of a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, and the matter has been reported to aviation watchdog DGCA. The aircraft operated the flight AI132 from London to Bengaluru, and it landed at Bengaluru on Monday morning, according to sources. In a statement, the airline said it is aware that one of its pilots has reported a possible defect on the fuel control switch of a Boeing 787-8 aircraft. "After receiving this initial information, we have grounded the said aircraft and are involving the OEM to get the pilot's concerns checked on a priority basis. The matter has been communicated to the aviation regulator, DGCA. Air India had checked the fuel control switches on all Boeing 787 aircraft in its fleet after a directive from the DGCA, and had found no issues," the statement said. The incident assumes significance against the backdrop of concerns in certain quarters about the functioning of the fuel control switch in th
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. The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) is probing the crash that killed a total of 260 people. In one of the worst aircraft accidents in India, a total of 260 people, including 241 passengers, died after Air India's Boeing 787-8 aircraft operating flight AI171 to London Gatwick crashed soon after take off from Ahmedabad on June 12, 2025. Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol on Monday told the Rajya Sabha that the AAIB probe is in progress. "All probable causes leading to the accident are being investigated, and all efforts are being made to complete the investigation in a time-bound manner," he said in a written reply. In its preliminary report on the crash that was released on July 12 last year, AAIB said the fuel supply to both engines o
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. In one of the worst aircraft accidents in India, a total of 260 people, including 241 passengers, died after Air India's Boeing 787-8 aircraft operating flight AI171 to London Gatwick crashed soon after take off from Ahmedabad on June 12, 2025. All aspects related to technical, operational, organisational and human factors are being looked into, and it is a very complex process. Certain components of the aircraft are also being examined by AAIB, the source told PTI. The source also said the probe runs on the "theory of elimination", and the SHELL model approach is followed. SHELL refers to Software, Hardware, Environment, and Liveware, with each element being ...
Air India converts order for A321neos to A321XLRs
Of those, 220 were from Boeing, including 190 Max jets largely deployed by Air India Express, the carrier's low-cost subsidiary for domestic and short-haul international routes
The Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to hear a PIL of an NGO alleging that the official probe into the June 12 Air India plane crash violated citizens' fundamental rights to life, equality and access to truthful information. Air India's Boeing 787-8 flight AI171 en route to London's Gatwick airport was operated by pilot-in-command Captain Sumeet Sabharwal and co-pilot Captain Clive Kunder. The crash took place after the flight took off from Ahmedabad, killing 260 people, including 241 passengers and crew on board. On Wednesday, a bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi was told by lawyer Prashant Bhushan, appearing for PIL petitioner NGO 'Safety Matters Foundation', that so far, neither the Centre nor the the Aircraft Accident Investigation Board (AAIB) have filed their replies to the petition. "The entire pilots association are saying there is a problem in the Boeing 787 aircraft which needs to be grounded," Bhushan submitted. "SIR (hearing on pleas