The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has instructed Indian carriers to carry out immediate one time inspection of emergency exits of Boeing 737 Max aircraft in their fleet.
The directive has been issued as a matter of abundant precaution after a door of Alaska Air Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft blew off mid air. No one was hurt in the incident and the aircraft returned to the US city of Portland after declaring an emergency. The airline has since grounded all its 737 Max 9 aircraft for inspections and US aviation regulators have ordered a probe.
In India, no airline operates the 737 Max 9 variant. However, Air India Express, Akasa and SpiceJet operate the 737 Max 8 variant. DGCA said Boeing has not issued any inputs or guidance yet. “However, as an abundant precautionary measure, DGCA has directed all the Indian air operators to carry out a one time inspection of the emergency exits immediately on all Boeing 737 Max-8 aircraft currently operating as part of their fleet,” DGCA said.