Amid heightened concerns about flight safety among flyers in the wake of the tragic crash of Air India flight AI 171 on June 12, Air India CEO Campbell Wilson on Wednesday assured flyers that the Tata group airline is focused on ensuring safe flight operations, and listed various measures being taken by the carrier to “reinforce” its operations following the accident, in which 260 persons perished. Wilson told flyers that Air India is ensuring that all its actions are aligned with the “highest standards of safety and care”.
“Following the tragic accident of AI 171 in June, it is understandable that there is heightened scrutiny, coverage, and concern about air travel. I would therefore like to share the measures we have taken to reinforce our operations,” Wilson wrote to members of Air India’s loyalty programme Maharaja Club.
“I acknowledge that there have been some operational challenges over the last few weeks that may have impacted your travel experience. Rest assured, we take this seriously and we are committed to strengthening our internal processes to minimise the inconvenience that such circumstances cause to you. Alongside, our broader efforts to modernise operations continue in full swing, including our retrofit programme which will significantly elevate your in-flight experience. So, whenever you choose to fly with Air India, know that your trust is valued and your journey safeguarded by our entire Air India family, through rigorous processes, advanced technology, and a deeply embedded culture of safety and care,” Wilson said.
Wilson’s comments come close on the heels of a few highly publicised aircraft snags over the past few weeks, which have drawn significant public attention in the wake of the Ahmedabad air crash. Over the past few weeks, Air India has been subject to a few regulatory actions by aviation safety regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
Wilson told Air India frequent flyers that the “safety pause”, which the airline had adopted after the crash, continues to be in place. This safety pause involves additional voluntary technical checks on aircraft and adopting a cautious approach in flight operations, and along with a few other factors, led to a temporary reduction in the carrier’s wide-body international schedule. The airline recently announced a phased restoration of international operations from August 1 and full resumption targeted for October 1, which was reiterated by Wilson in his communication to Maharaja Club members.
“The voluntary ‘Safety Pause’ I had communicated in my last email on 19 June, 2025 continues, entailing a temporary reduction in our schedule to accommodate additional pre-flight checks and mitigate the impact of regional airspace closures. We also took the opportunity of additional ground time to accelerate upgrades to improve aircraft reliability and to strengthen how we manage delays and disruptions,” Wilson said.
The Air India CEO said that the carrier’s regular safety protocols are “rigorous and multi-layered”, with every aircraft undergoing “thorough” pre-departure checks by trained engineers and pilots. “Maintenance is conducted at certified facilities before and between flights. Our pilots, cabin crew, and engineers train regularly at the Air India Training Academy, ensuring full alignment with the latest safety procedures and global best practices and our Integrated Operations Control Centre tracks every flight in real time, monitoring weather, crew, and aircraft performance,” Wilson told flyers.
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Listing some of the other inspections and checks conducted by the airline, Wilson said that Air India’s entire fleet of Boeing 787 aircraft—the type involved in the June 12 crash in Ahmedabad—was inspected under the oversight of the DGCA, and did not reveal any issue. As with some other international airlines, Air India and its arm Air India Express also inspected the fuel control switch mechanism of Boeing 737 and 787-8 aircraft, which also did not reveal any adverse finding.
The preliminary investigation report into the tragic accident said that the Air India Boeing 787 aircraft crashed after both its engines were starved of fuel as the two fuel control switches transitioned from ‘RUN’ to ‘CUTOFF’ position within a second of each other moments after lift-off. Following the initial probe report, the airline started voluntary checks of the fuel control switches on its Boeing 787 fleet, which was followed by a DGCA directive to all operators to do so on most of the Boeing aircraft registered in India.
“We continue to work closely with regulators, maintaining full transparency and ensuring that every action we take aligns with the highest standards of safety and care. All our processes are backed by a comprehensive Safety Management System aligned with global aviation standards and fully compliant with DGCA and the UN International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) guidelines. Air India, like all major airlines, undergoes annual audits by our regulator, the DGCA, and a bi-annual IATA Operational Safety Audit conducted by an external team of experts. These audits are part of the aviation industry’s process of continuous improvement and, as the DGCA stated in a recent communique, Air India’s recent results are ‘entirely normal’ for an airline of our scale and scope,” Wilson said.
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