In 2023, the DGCA flagged confusion over safety oversight roles between Chief of Flight Safety Rajeev Gupta and Head of Safety, Security, and Quality Henry Donohoe. The regulator urged CEO Campbell Wilson to streamline reporting lines to improve safety management.
Experts say there is no reason to believe that a manufacturing or design issue was the cause. “Was maintenance keeping pace with the extensive use of the fleet?” an air safety expert questioned. “Of course, accident investigators will consider every possibility.”
A former Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau official, however, pointed that that initial investigation suggests a case of both engines losing power, terming it a “rarest-of-rare” incident.
The investigation, however, is underway.
“A formal investigation has been initiated by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau, in line with international protocols set by the International Civil Aviation Organization,” said Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu.
“Additionally, the government is constituting a high-level committee comprising experts from multiple disciplines to examine the matter in detail. The committee will work to strengthen aviation safety and prevent such incidents in future,” Naidu said.
The widebody 787 planes, one of the most modern passenger aircraft in service, have never had a fatal crash until the Air India incident.
