Air India CEO says crashed Dreamliner was well-maintained, undergone last major check in Jun 2023
Mumbai, Jun 19 (PTI): The crashed Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner was "well-maintained" and had undergone a major check in June 2023 with the next scheduled for December this year, said Air India CEO and Managing Director Campbell Wilson on Thursday.
In a message to flyers, the Air India chief also said the 15 per cent reduction in Air India's international wide-body fleet operations for the next few weeks is a temporary move and it may affect its customers' travel plans.
"The plane was well-maintained, with its last major check in June 2023 and the next scheduled for December 2025. Its right engine was overhauled in March 2025, and the left engine was inspected in April 2025. Both the aircraft and engines were regularly monitored, showing no issues before the flight," he said.
The airline chief further said the loss of 241 passengers and crew members, along with 34 people on the ground, has "left us all in deep sorrow".
"Words cannot express the pain we feel for the families and loved ones affected by this devastating event. We are fully committed to doing all we can to support the families impacted and are also working closely with authorities to understand the cause of this tragedy. Our thoughts are with everyone touched by this loss," Wilson said in the message.
He said that the airline as well as the entire aviation industry was awaiting the official investigation report to understand more.
Campbell said that following the June 12 crash and as directed by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the airline has been conducting thorough safety inspections on its 33 Boeing 787 aircraft.
So far, inspections have been completed on 26 aircraft and these have been cleared for service, he said and added that the remaining aircraft are currently in planned maintenance and will have these additional checks done before being released into service.
"Following the review, the DGCA has confirmed that Air India Boeing 787 fleet and maintenance processes fully meet safety standards," he said.
While DGCA raised concerns over recent maintenance-related issues at Air India and directed airline to boost inter-department coordination, it said that the surveillance of the airline's Boeing 787 fleet did not reveal any major safety concerns in the wake of the fatal plane crash in Ahmedabad last week.
On June 13, a day after the B787-8 crash that killed 241 people on board, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation ordered enhanced surveillance of Air India's Boeing 787 fleet, comprising 26 787-8s and seven 787-9s.
"Regrettably, the time required to perform these enhanced safety checks, along with the application of extra caution, external factors like airspace closures in Iran and the Middle East as well as night-time restrictions at some international airports, along with normal airline technical issues, has led to a higher-than-usual number of cancellations on our long-haul network in the past few days," the Air India chief said in his message.
"We know these disruptions have been frustrating, and we're truly sorry for the inconvenience. As a confidence-building measure, the airline has elected to continue enhanced pre-flight safety checks on its Boeing 787 fleet and, as an added measure, its Boeing 777 aircraft, for the time being," he said.
Given the time these additional checks will consume and the potential impact on schedules, Air India has decided to reduce its international wide-body flights by around 15 per cent starting June 20, through to at least mid-July, Wilson said.
"This will also allow us to have more backup aircraft ready to handle any unexpected issues. We understand that this temporary reduction to our schedule may affect your travel plans, and we're deeply sorry for any inconvenience," he said.
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2nd WT20I: Shafali, spin trio do star turns in India''s seven-wicket win
Visakhapatnam (PTI): Shafali Verma hit a blistering unbeaten 69 as India made short work of a paltry target to outclass Sri Lanka by seven wickets in the second Women’s T20 International here on Tuesday.
India now lead the five-match series 2-0 after another one-sided victory, having restricted Sri Lanka to a modest 128 for 9 through a collective display of disciplined bowling from the spin trio of seasoned Sneh Rana, ably complemented by young spinners Vaishnavi Sharma and Shree Charani.
During the chase, vice-captain Smriti Mandhana (14) fell cheaply but Shafali, enjoying new found confidence after a stellar show in the World Cup final, sent the bowlers on a leather-hunt during her 34-ball knock, winning it for her team in just 11.5 overs.
The hosts have now completed back-to-back successful chases within 15 overs which speaks volumes about the unit's sky-high confidence.
Shafali's innings had 11 punchy boundaries apart from a maximum.
The floodgates opened when left-arm spinner Inoka Ranaweera bowled a few flighted deliveries and Shafali would step out everytime to hit her over extra cover. Her footwork against slow bowlers was immaculate whether stepping out to loft the ball or rocking back to punch or pull.
Seeing her confidence, the newly appointed Delhi Capitals skipper Jemimah Rodrigues (26 off 15 balls) also attacked as the duo added 58 runs in just 4.3 overs.
By the time Rodrigues was out trying to hit one six too many, the match as a contest was over. Shafali completed her half-century off just 27 balls and completed the formalities in a jiffy.
Earlier, off-spinner Rana, who got a look-in after Deepti Sharma was ruled out due to fever, showed her utility keeping the Lankan batters under tight leash with figures of 1 for 11 in 4 overs, including a maiden which certainly is a rarity in T20 cricket.
Charani, who made an impression during India's ODI World Cup triumph, took 2 for 23 in her quota of overs, while Vaishnavi after an impressive debut in the opening encounter, finished with 2 for 32, not letting the Islanders get easy runs in her second spell.
The last six wickets fell for just 24 runs, but what stood out during India’s bowling effort was their superb ground fielding. After a patchy show in the previous game, the improved sharpness in the field resulted in three run-outs.
Sri Lankan skipper Chamari Athapaththu (31 off 24 balls) looked in good nick as she deposited length deliveries from seamers Kranti Gaud and Arundhati Reddy over the ropes but it was Rana, who kept her quiet by repeatedly pitching on good length.
Unable to manoeuvre the strike and with the big hits suddenly drying up, Athapaththu chanced her arm at another delivery in which Rana had shortened the length slightly.
Not having transferred the weight into the lofted shot, Athapaththu's hoick was pouched cleanly by Amanjot Kaur at long-off.
This was after Athapaththu's opening partner Vishmi Gunaratne (1) had offered a simple return catch to Gaud.
Hasini Perera (22 off 28 balls) and Harshitha Samarawickrama (33 off 32 balls) did stitch a stand of 44 but they could never set the tempo against the Indian spin troika.
Once Hasini offered a tame return catch off a Charani full-toss, Sri Lankans never recovered and lost wickets in a heap towards the end.
