Author: Aditya Kalra and Abhijith Ganapavaram
NEW DELHI, Feb 5 (Reuters) – Air India said on Thursday it was investigating whether its crew followed all compliance procedures when a Boeing plane took off from London and was subsequently grounded in India due to a possible fuel switch defect.
Reuters first reported the airline’s investigation into Sunday’s incident, after reporting that British aviation authorities had privately asked Air India to provide details of all maintenance operations before deciding to take off.
The UK has given Air India a week to submit a complete reply or face regulatory action against it and its fleet of 33 Boeing 787s.
Authorities said the pilot in London observed the fuel control switch not staying in the “run” position on two attempts but holding steady on a third try.
The crew decided to fly to India and the pilot reported a possible “defect” during landing, forcing the plane to be grounded for inspection.
Air India said in a statement that it would “follow its safety investigation protocols and take appropriate action” in response to a Reuters query about whether the pilot raised concerns with British authorities before takeoff.
It did not detail possible actions.
Problem report on landing in India
A source with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters that Air India’s investigation will ask why the crew did not report the incident in London and why they later reported the incident in India if they thought the flight was safe.
India’s Civil Aviation Authority did not immediately respond to a Reuters query.
The fuel switch, which regulates the flow of jet fuel to a plane’s engines, was at the heart of last year’s crash of an Air India Dreamliner in the western state of Gujarat that killed 260 people and triggered greater scrutiny of the airline.
After Sunday’s incident, Air India and Indian authorities said there was no problem with fuel control switches on the airline’s Dreamliner fleet.
British regulators have sought to conduct a “comprehensive root cause analysis” of the incident and develop a “preventive action plan” to avoid another such incident on Air India’s Boeing 787 fleet, Reuters reported on Wednesday.
“The safety of passengers and crew remains Air India’s top priority,” the airline added in a statement.
(Reporting by Aditya Kalra; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
