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Air India flight lost altitude: 20 hurt, probe due in 15 days
DGCA will decide on fines, management liability, or enhanced surveillance after AAIB finishes its preliminary report on the Air India A320neo altitude-loss incident.
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Twenty passengers and four crew members were injured on August 4 when an Air India Airbus A320neo lost altitude suddenly during a Phuket-Delhi flight. The aircraft, registered VT-EXO, landed safely in Delhi. The preliminary investigation report from the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) is expected within 10-15 days, sources told businessline.
After that report is in, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) will decide on any action against Air India, the sources said. Fines and management liability are possible, they said, though nothing will happen until the AAIB completes its initial findings. Enhanced surveillance of the airline may also be imposed depending on what the probe turns up.
Air India is entirely responsible for compliance with Civil Aviation Requirements (CARs), the sources said. The regulator will not micromanage an airline on routine compliance. That responsibility sits with the airline’s management.
The AAIB is examining turbulence, drug-test results, and potential faults in the aircraft’s hydraulic and flight-control systems. A post-flight maintenance report reviewed by businessline flagged multiple warnings: low hydraulic system pressure, low reservoir levels, and faults in the left and right elevators. The autopilot was off, recorded as “AUTO FLT AP OFF.”