New Delhi [India], July 22 (HBTV): Air India on Tuesday announced that it has completed inspections of the locking mechanism of the Fuel Control Switch (FCS) across all Boeing 787 and 737 aircraft in its fleet, confirming that no issues were detected.

The airline clarified that the Boeing 737 aircraft are part of Air India Express, its low-cost subsidiary. The inspections were undertaken as a precautionary measure following directives issued by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on July 14, 2025.

‘Air India has completed precautionary inspections on the locking mechanism of the Fuel Control Switch (FCS) on all Boeing 787 and Boeing 737 aircraft in its fleet. Boeing 737 aircraft are part of the fleet of Air India Express, Air India’s low-cost subsidiary. With this, the two airlines have complied with the directives of the DGCA issued on July 14, 2025,’ the airline said in a statement.

‘In the inspections, no issues were found with the said locking mechanism. Air India had started voluntary inspections on July 12 and completed them within the prescribed time limit set by the DGCA. The same has been communicated to the regulator,’ the statement added.

Meanwhile, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol told Parliament on Monday that no adverse trends had been reported in the reliability reports concerning Air India flight AI171, which crashed in Ahmedabad last month. The minister was responding to a written question from Rajya Sabha MP John Brittas regarding any safety concerns raised prior to the accident.

‘During the last six months, no adverse trend has been reported in reliability reports of Air India in respect of crashed aircraft,’ the minister stated in his reply.

However, he also disclosed that nine show cause notices had been issued to Air India over the past six months in connection with five identified safety violations. ‘Enforcement action has been completed in respect of one violation,’ he said.

On the cause of the AI171 crash, the minister said an investigation was underway to determine the reasons or contributory factors. The Air India flight crashed in Ahmedabad on June 12, killing 260 people, including 241 on board and 19 on the ground, after the aircraft stormed into a doctors' hostel.

A preliminary report on the accident was published by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) on July 12 and is available on its official website. ‘The investigation is in progress to determine the probable cause(s)/contributory factor(s) leading to the accident,’ the minister said.

In response to another query, the minister informed the Rajya Sabha that there are currently 33 Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft in the fleets of Indian carriers, two of which are under scheduled maintenance.

Asked whether the government intends to withdraw Boeing 787 Dreamliners from the civil aviation sector in light of the crash, or initiate a CBI inquiry into the incident, the minister replied: ‘No such proposal is under consideration.’

(ANI)