India’s aviation regulator has ordered Air India to remove three employees from their roles due to serious failures in safety and crew scheduling.
India aviation regulator orders expulsion of three Air India employees
According to reports, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) issued this directive following increasing concern over recent incidents, including a fatal plane crash in Ahmedabad.
Although the DGCA directive does not directly link the removals to the 12 June crash of flight AI171, it highlighted “systemic failures” within Air India.
These failures included problems with how flight crews were scheduled, monitored, and held accountable.
The regulator made it clear that the airline’s own reports showed major flaws in its operations and a lack of consequences for staff who made critical errors.
“Of particular concern is the absence of strict disciplinary measures against key officials directly responsible for these operational lapses,” the DGCA said.
It added that the three officials had a history of “serious and repeated lapses” and directed Air India to remove them from all duties involving crew scheduling.
The airline must also take formal disciplinary action and report back within 10 days. The DGCA warned that future violations could lead to licence suspension.
Air India confirmed on Saturday that it had complied with the order.
“Air India is committed to ensuring that there is total adherence to safety protocols and standard practices,” the airline said in a statement.
This development comes just days after flight AI171, bound for London, crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad. Only one of the 242 passengers, Vishwashkumar Ramesh, and crew members on board survived.
The crash also killed 38 people on the ground. The cause of the crash is still under investigation, but safety experts are analysing the plane’s black box – a device that records flight data and cockpit conversations – to find out what went wrong.
In a separate incident on 15 June 2025, another Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner was forced to turn back mid-flight from Hong Kong to New Delhi after the pilot reported a possible technical issue.
The plane landed safely in Hong Kong after being in the air for about 79 minutes.
Air India is now facing intense scrutiny. The crash and subsequent incidents have prompted aviation authorities in India, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Boeing to jointly investigate.
India’s Civil Aviation Minister, Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu, called the recovery of the black box a critical step in understanding the tragedy.
Authorities are also carrying out thorough safety checks on all Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft in Air India’s fleet.
These inspections focus on parts like the engines, flaps, and landing gear, all of which are under investigation as potential contributors to the crash.