Air India will reduce its international widebody flights by around 15 per cent for the next few weeks from June 20, as it is carrying out additional pre-flight safety checks which may impact schedules.
Following the tragic crash of Air India flight scheduled from Ahmedabad to London on June 12, the airline has decided to continue enhanced pre-flight safety checks on Boeing 787 fleet and Boeing 777 aircraft for the time being as a confidence-building measure, said Campbell Wilson, CEO & MD, Air India, in a statement e-mailed to customers on Thursday.
“Given the time these additional checks will consume and the potential impact on schedules, we have decided to reduce our international widebody flights by around 15 per cent starting June 20 through to at least mid-July. This will also allow us to have more backup aircraft ready to handle any unexpected issues,” he said.
Rebooking option
Campbell assured customers that in case their flight is impacted, the airlines will contact them to offer rebooking on another flight at no extra cost or a full refund. “We will share the updated international schedule within the next few days,” he said.
As directed by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on June 14, Air India has been conducting safety inspections on its 33 Boeing 787 aircraft, the statement pointed out. “So far, inspections have been completed on 26, and these have been cleared for service. 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 our Boeing 787 fleet and maintenance processes fully meet safety standards,” Campbell noted.