Days after Air India flight crash, another dropped 900ft mid-air
What's the story
A Delhi-Vienna Air India flight, AI187, dropped nearly 900 feet during its initial climb on June 14. According to a report by The Times of India, the Boeing 777 aircraft, registered as VT-ALJ, received multiple critical warnings shortly after takeoff from Delhi at 2:56am amid a thunderstorm. After takeoff, the aircraft received a stall warning and two "don't sink" cautions from the Ground Proximity Warning System (GPWS), alerting the crew to an unusual loss of altitude.
Incident details
Aircraft received multiple critical warnings during initial climb
"The aircraft was involved in an inflight occurrence of stick shaker and GPWS caution. Soon after takeoff, stick shaker warning and GPWS don't sink caution appeared. Stall warning came once and GPWS caution came twice," TOI quoted officials as saying. Fortunately, the pilots managed to recover the aircraft and land safely in Vienna. A stick shaker warning occurs when the control column on the flight deck shakes and generates noise, signaling to the pilot that something is wrong.
Investigation underway
Pilots off-rostered pending outcome of investigation
Officials stated that the initial Air India flight report indicated that the pilots received "stick shaker due to turbulence after takeoff mentioned and not the other occurrences in detail." However, when officials investigated the B777's flight data recorder (DFDR), they discovered that other warnings, such as GPWS don't sink caution and stall alert, were in play.
Safety emphasis
DGCA has initiated a probe into the incident
An Air India spokesperson told TOI that a probe has been initiated and the two pilots have been off-rostered pending the outcome of this investigation. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has taken note of this incident, especially after the recent tragic crash on June 12, when another Air India flight crashed minutes after taking off from the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport in Ahmedabad, killing 271 people on board.