New Delhi, June 13 — A day after an Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner crashed moments after take-off from Ahmedabad, killing 241 people, the Union government is actively considering grounding the entire fleet of the wide-body aircraft pending a comprehensive safety review, sources said on Friday.
According to senior officials familiar with the matter, the move comes amid heightened safety concerns surrounding the Boeing 787-8 model, a flagship long-haul aircraft used by Air India and several other international carriers. Talks are currently underway between Indian aviation authorities and their counterparts in the United States to evaluate the technical and operational safety of the aircraft.
“A final decision will be made once preliminary findings from the crash probe are available,” a source in the Ministry of Civil Aviation said, requesting anonymity. The investigation is being jointly handled by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and technical teams from Boeing, with support from global safety agencies.
The aircraft involved in Thursday’s crash, a 2013-model Dreamliner registered as VT-ABN, plunged into a residential neighbourhood seconds after departing from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport. The incident has raised urgent questions about possible technical malfunctions and adherence to safety protocols.
Officials also hinted at potential scrutiny of Air India’s internal maintenance procedures and standard operating protocols. “The investigation may also examine whether Air India complied with all required checks and maintenance norms, especially for older aircraft in its fleet,” one official added.
The move to potentially ground the Dreamliner fleet would be the most significant aviation safety measure taken since the temporary grounding of the Boeing 737 MAX in 2019 following two fatal crashes globally. Air India operates a sizeable number of 787-8s, making such a decision operationally and commercially significant.
While the airline has yet to comment officially on the government’s deliberations, aviation experts believe the precautionary grounding, if implemented, would reflect India’s commitment to global best practices in aviation safety.
The crash has also triggered a flurry of insurance, legal, and diplomatic responses, especially given the presence of multiple foreign nationals on board. The full investigation report is expected to shed light on the technical or procedural lapses that led to one of India’s worst aviation disasters in recent memory.
