Air India on Tuesday initiated precautionary ‘fleet-wide re-inspection’ of fuel control switches on all its Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft after a pilot flagged a possible defect in one of the switches a day earlier.
Inspections of nearly half of the Dreamliner fleet have already been completed and no problems have been found so far. Checks on the remaining aircraft are still in progress. The airline has also raised the matter with Boeing and have asked if to review the aircraft on priority. So far, no defects have emerged during the precautionary, fleet-wide reinspection of the fuel control switches, ANI reported citing sources.
Aircraft grounded, DGCA informed
Earlier, an Air India Boeing 787-8 aircraft was grounded after a pilot reported a possible issue with the fuel control switch. The airline later informed the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), India’s aviation regulator, about the matter.
An Air India spokesperson said the airline is working closely with the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) to address the pilot’s concern on priority.
“We are aware that one of our pilots has reported a possible defect on the fuel control switch of a Boeing 787-8 aircraft. After receiving this initial information, we have grounded the said aircraft and are involving the OEM to get the pilot’s concerns checked on a priority basis,” ANI quoted the spokesperson as saying.
The official added that the matter has been communicated to the aviation regulator, DGCA. “Air India had checked the fuel control switches on all Boeing 787 aircraft in its fleet after a directive from the DGCA, and had found no issues. At Air India, the safety of our passengers and crew remains top priority”.
Past incidents raise fresh concerns
After the incident, Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP) President Captain CS Randhawa on Monday asked the DGCA and the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) to immediately look into possible electrical faults in Boeing 787 aircraft. He pointed to repeated incidents involving uncommanded movement of fuel control switches, as per the report.
Captain Randhawa pointed out that it was the third known case where such uncommanded movement had been reported in a Boeing 787 aircraft. “The first incident on the Boeing 787-800 aircraft took place on 17 February 2019 at Osaka on an ANA flight, which was landing at Osaka, where both fuel control switches on touchdown, when the throttles were brought to idle position, both these switches went to cutoff position automatically due to an electrical malfunction of the TCMA,” ANI quoted Randhawa as saying.