Air India has reduced its international widebody services by 15% as the Tata Group-owned carrier focuses on stabilising operations, improving efficiency, and minimising passenger inconvenience. This move follows the tragic crash of an Ahmedabad–London Boeing Dreamliner, which resulted in the loss of 241 lives.
Meanwhile, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had also ordered an ‘Enhanced Safety Inspection’ of Air India’s fleet of Boeing 787-8 and 787-9 aircraft. So far, 26 out of the total 33 aircraft have undergone inspection and have been cleared for operation. The remaining aircraft is expected to be inspected in the next few days.
"As a matter of added precaution, Air India will also undertake enhanced safety checks on its Boeing 777 fleet and, going forward, we will continue to cooperate with the authorities, viz Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), DGCA, MoCA to ensure the safety of our passengers, our crew and our aircraft, which remains our highest priority," Air India said in a statement.
Campbell Wilson, CEO and MD, Air India, said that the affected plane was well-maintained and their broader fleet has been inspected.
On top of this, the tensions brewing in the West Asia region have also resulted in some disruptions in the carriers' international operations over the last 6 days. This has eventually resulted in 83 cancellations.
"Given the compounding circumstances that Air India is facing, to ensure stability of our operations, better efficiency and to minimise inconvenience to passengers, Air India has decided to reduce its international services on widebody aircraft by 15% for the next few weeks," the company said.
The cuts will be implemented between the current days and June 20. This will continue thereafter until mid-July. This effectively adds to our reserve aircraft availability to take care of any unplanned disruptions, the company said.
In a separate statement, N. Chandrasekaran, Chairman of Air India and Tata Sons, issued an apology during an interview with Times Now.
"I deeply regret that this accident happened in a Tata-run airline. And I feel very sorry...We wish to create an AI 171 trust which will be available to them to look after. But it is not just about financial needs, but other needs too. We have to think through and create the trust and other functioning infrastructure so that we can be with these families,” he added.
