Nearly 3/4 of Air India’s 267 planes flagged for repeated defects since Jan 2025
Mumbai (PTI): Nearly three-fourths of the Air India Group's 267 planes that were analysed for repetitive defects have been identified as having recurring defects, the data presented in the Lok Sabha on Thursday showed.
In all, 377 aircraft have been identified as having recurring defects since January last year, of the total 754 aircraft analysed for such deficiencies across six scheduled airlines, the government told Lok Sabha on Thursday.
Of these, 405 aircraft belonging to IndiGo were analysed, of which 148 were identified for repetitive defects, as on February 3, this year, as per the data presented by Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol in Lok Sabha in response to MPs question.
Of the 166 Air India aircraft analysed, 137 planes were identified for repetitive defects, while 54 Air India Express aircraft were identified for repetitive defects of the 101 aircraft analysed, the data showed.
Taken together, a total of 267 aircraft of Air India Group (Air India and Air India Express) were analysed, of which 191 or nearly 72 per cent were identified for repetitive defects.
Also, of the 43 aircraft of SpiceJet were analysed, 16 planes were identified for repetitive defects, and a total of 14 Akasa Air aircraft were identified for repetitive defects of the 32 aircraft analysed, according to the data.
Speaking on the data, an Air India spokesperson said, "We have, out of abundance caution, carried out checks across our fleet. Hence, numbers are higher.
A senior Air India executive said there are different types of equipment which are checked on planes. These are categorised into A, B, C and D segments, depending on the priority or urgency of the equipment.
"In case of Air India, most of the issues are with category D, which includes items like seats, tray tables, screens (on the back of seats) and so on. These are not related to the safety of the aircraft," the executive said.
As the retrofit programme for narrow-body aircraft rolls out over the next two years, these issues will be resolved too, the executive added.
At the same time, aviation safety regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) also conducted 3,890 surveillance inspections, 56 regulatory audits, 84 surveillance of foreign aircraft (SOFA) and 492 ramp checks as part of its planned surveillance activities in last year besides carrying out 874 spot checks and 550 night surveillance as part of the unplanned surveillance activities during the previous year, Mohol said.
In response to another question, the Minister said that in 2022, DGCA had 637 sanctioned technical posts and added that in order to address shortage of manpower in future, the restructuring has been done and number of sanctioned technical posts has been increased to 1063.
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No need for guv: DMK leader Kanimozhi
Chennai (PTI): Senior DMK leader Kanimozhi Karunanidhi on Friday reiterated her party’s opposition to the office of the governor amid uncertainty over government formation in Tamil Nadu after a fractured election mandate.
Speaking to PTI Videos, Kanimozhi emphasised that the DMK’s demand for the abolition of the governor’s post remained unchanged, especially as questions arise over constitutional propriety during the current political transition.
"Our position that we do not need a governor at all is something the DMK has never changed at any point in time," she said.
When asked about the governor’s actions following the election results—particularly the delay in inviting the leading party to form the government—Kanimozhi pointed to what she described as the "inherent friction" between the office of the governor and the political interests of the state.
She said the current situation "raises a lot of questions" and requires introspection regarding constitutional procedures.
Kanimozhi described the election results as lacking a "clear mandate", which she identified as the primary reason for the prevailing political uncertainty in the state.
"What the people decide is supreme," she said, adding that while the mandate was not decisive, it must be respected.
The Thoothukudi MP attributed the ongoing delays and "many confusions" to the absence of a decisive majority for any single party.
She firmly dismissed rumours about the DMK potentially supporting the AIADMK from outside to help stabilise the government.
She described such reports as mere "speculation" and "rumours".
"We can’t be responding to every rumour," she said, declining to comment on the AIADMK’s claims regarding its numbers to form the government.
The political situation in Tamil Nadu remains fluid as stakeholders await the governor’s next constitutional step in an Assembly where no party has secured a clear majority.
The DMK and AIADMK—both of which suffered significant losses to the TVK—are reportedly exploring tactical manoeuvres to navigate the hung Assembly.
The TVK, with 108 seats and the support of Congress’s five MLAs, is still short of the majority mark. The DMK and AIADMK secured 59 and 47 seats, respectively.
