India’s aviation authority has discovered 51 safety-related flaws at Air India in its latest audit. While the report isn’t directly linked to the tragic Boeing 787 crash last month that claimed 260 lives, it comes as the airline remains under tight scrutiny.
Of the 51 issues, seven were classified as “Level 1”, which the aviation regulator says pose a serious risk to flight safety. However, the DGCA didn’t provide full details about the specific breaches.
Air India, in a statement, confirmed its cooperation during the July audit and said it was working to address the issues.
“We have acknowledged the DGCA’s observations and will submit our detailed responses within the set time frame,” said a spokesperson.
They emphasised that routine safety audits are part of the global aviation system and not unique to India.
In total, the DGCA’s audit of eight airlines uncovered 263 safety concerns. Air India ranked high among them with 7 Level 1 and 44 Level 2 findings.
Other flagged airlines include: Alliance Air – 57 issues, Ghodawat Star – 4,1 Quick Jet – 35, IndiGo – 2,3 SpiceJet – 14
Level 1 issues may lead to actions like suspensions or license restrictions, while Level 2 violations are less severe but still considered threats to operational safety.
According to a government report seen by Reuters, the airline’s training processes for Boeing 787 and 777 pilots were flagged. Concerns included the use of non-approved flight simulators and the absence of mandatory flight monitoring.
Poor rostering practices also contributed to operational flaws.
The DGCA defended the volume of issues found, stating that larger airlines with bigger fleets will naturally have more findings due to the complexity of their operations.
“This is not abnormal for airlines with wide-ranging operations. Global regulators face similar patterns with big carriers,” the authority noted.
Earlier this year, the DGCA had also flagged Air India Express for delaying engine part replacements and falsifying records. The airline later admitted the error and committed to corrective action.
DGCA chief Faiz Ahmed Kidwai told the BBC that the case was discovered through the airline’s reporting, which he sees as a positive step forward.
“We’re not happy with the mistakes, but at least we’re now seeing honesty and transparency from airlines,” he said.
According to ICAO data, India has generally performed better than the global average when it comes to flight safety, with only two years since 2010 exceeding average accident rates — both involving major crashes.
Still, India has faced three deadly accidents involving Air India since 2010: 2024: Boeing 787 crash – 260 dead, 2020: Kozhikode runway overrun – 21 dead, 2010: Mangalore crash – 158 dead
Since 2020, 2,461 technical faults have been reported across domestic airlines. Most came from IndiGo (1,288), followed by SpiceJet (633) and Air India Group (389).
Mr. Kidwai says the rise in reporting is a sign of a maturing safety culture:
“We want every fault to be reported. Hiding problems is more dangerous than admitting and fixing them,” he concluded.
