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Air India has launched a comprehensive inspection of its Boeing 787 Dreamliner fleet after a fuel control switch malfunction was reported on a London–Bengaluru flight. The aircraft was grounded before takeoff as a precaution.
Fuel Control Switch Issue Prompts Air India to Inspect Boeing 787 Fleet
New Delhi: Air India has increased its vigilance on its Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft due to the risk of a fuel control switch malfunction. On Monday (February 2), the pilot of a flight from London to Bengaluru reported a fuel control switch malfunction before takeoff. Following this, the flight was grounded and an investigation was immediately initiated.
Air India has a total of 33 Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft. Manish Uppal, the company's senior vice president, stated that inspections have been completed on approximately half of the fleet, and no defects have been found so far. Investigations on the remaining aircraft are still ongoing. The airline's engineering team has prioritized the issue with Boeing following the problem on the London-Bengaluru flight.
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Uppal stated, "While we await Boeing's report, our engineers have initiated a re-inspection of the fuel control switch latch across the entire fleet. No problems have been found on the aircraft that have completed this inspection."
Air India has instructed its pilots and crew to immediately report any malfunctions during operations and to complete all safety checks before flights. This step follows the Boeing 787-8 crash in Ahmedabad last year, which killed 260 people after a fuel failure shortly after takeoff.
Air India operates 33 Boeing 787s, including 26 older 787-8s and 7 new 787-9s. These include 6 Vistara aircraft and 1 custom-built aircraft added to the fleet in January. The company is continuously focusing on safety checks on all its aircraft.
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Air India emphasized that safety is a priority and immediate action will be taken as soon as any malfunction is detected. The crew and engineering team are working diligently during aircraft operations.
Thus, Air India has taken the fuel control switch malfunction seriously and has initiated a comprehensive inspection of the entire fleet to completely eliminate the possibility of any future accident.
