Following the tragic crash of Air India Flight AI171 in Ahmedabad that claimed over 270 lives, the airline has cancelled seven international flights amid intensified safety checks—six of which involved Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners, the same model involved in the crash.
The affected flights include key routes to and from cities like Dubai, Paris, Vienna, London, San Francisco, and Amritsar. The cancelled Dreamliner-operated flights are:
- AI915: Delhi to Dubai
- AI153: Delhi to Vienna
- AI143: Delhi to Paris
- AI159: Ahmedabad to London
- AI170: London to Amritsar
- AI133: Bengaluru to London
Additionally, AI179 from Mumbai to San Francisco, operated by a Boeing 777, was also grounded.
Air India stated that some cancellations were due to technical snags while others resulted from aircraft unavailability. For example, AI143 (Delhi-Paris) was halted after a pre-flight inspection revealed a technical issue, and AI159 (Ahmedabad-London) was suspended due to the aircraft not being ready. AI159 was notably the first scheduled Dreamliner flight from Ahmedabad since the June 12 crash—now rebranded after the airline retired the AI171 flight number out of respect for the victims.
Meanwhile, another Boeing 777—Flight AI180 from San Francisco to Mumbai via Kolkata—suffered a technical snag in its left engine during a stop in Kolkata. All passengers were safely deboarded after the fault was detected around 5:20 am.
As cancellations pile up, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has stepped in, calling for an emergency meeting with senior officials from Air India and Air India Express. While the official agenda hasn’t been disclosed, the meeting is expected to address growing safety concerns and operational disruptions.
