Air India cuts 48 international Boeing flights amid safety review
What's the story
Air India has announced a major reduction in its international flight operations.
The airline will temporarily cancel and suspend 48 weekly long and ultra-long-haul flights from June 21 to at least July 15, 2025.
These flights are operated by Boeing 777 and 787 aircraft. The decision comes after the airline's recent move to introduce enhanced pre-flight safety checks across its wide-body fleet.
Operational changes
Measures taken after fatal plane crash in Ahmedabad
The enhanced pre-flight safety checks are part of a confidence-building measure after a fatal plane crash in Ahmedabad on June 12 that killed over 270 people, including 241 onboard.
These checks, in addition to airspace closures in the Middle East and other external operational constraints, have led to a 15% reduction in wide-body services, the airline said.
Affected routes
10 weekly flights on 3 routes to be suspended
Air India will suspend 10 weekly flights on three routes until July 15.
The affected routes are Delhi-Nairobi (four times a week), Amritsar-London Gatwick (three times a week), and Goa-London Gatwick (three times a week).
Along with these, another 38 flights will be canceled per week on 16 international long-haul routes to North America, Europe, Australia, Japan, and South Korea.
Route impact
A look at affected routes
The North American routes affected by the suspension include Delhi-Toronto, Delhi-Vancouver, Delhi-San Francisco, Delhi-Chicago, and Delhi-Washington D.C.
In Europe, frequencies will be reduced on Delhi and Bengaluru-London Heathrow; Amritsar and Delhi-Birmingham; as well as Delhi-Paris, Milan, Copenhagen, Vienna, and Amsterdam.
Services to Melbourne and Sydney in Australia; Tokyo Haneda in Japan; Seoul Incheon in South Korea will also be reduced.
Passenger impact
Safety-first approach key to revised schedule, says CEO
Air India CEO Campbell Wilson has said that the safety-first approach is key to the airline's revised schedule.
He acknowledged that the enhanced checks, night curfews at certain airports, and ongoing Middle East airspace restrictions are major contributors to these temporary adjustments.
Wilson also said that affected passengers are being contacted for re-accommodation on alternate flights, free rescheduling or full refunds as per their preferences.