DGCA seeks details of Air India inspections, audits since 2024: Sources

Air India

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Saturday asked flight operations inspectors to furnish details of all inspections and audits conducted for Air India since 2024

The details on the findings of the inspections and audits will have to be submitted by Sunday, PTI said quoting sources.

In an e-mailed communication, which came a day after the aviation safety regulator issued a show-cause notice to the airline for flight duty time limitations (FDTL) violation, and also ordered removal of the airline's three senior officials from their respective roles for certain lapses, DGCA has sought these details for 2024 and 2025 (to date), the sources said.

According to the report, the data has been sought on planned and unplanned inspections, audit, cockpit/ enroute, station facility, ramp and cabin inspection among others, as per the communication.

The Tata Group airline has been facing intense scrutiny after one of its Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner crashed shortly after taking off from the Ahmedabad airport on June 12, killing over 270 people on board and on the ground. Former Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani was among the 241 on board who died in the AI-171 plane crash.

The inspection and audit details sought by the safety regulator include findings on ramp and cabin, among others.

In the tragic incident, only one person survived among the 242 individuals on board the ill-fated plane. Vishwaskumar Ramesh, a 40-year-old British national, miraculously escaped the crash and was discharged from Ahmedabad's Civil Hospital earlier this week.