An Air India flight from Delhi to Pune was grounded on Friday after a bird hit incident, while eight additional services were cancelled due to enhanced maintenance requirements and operational considerations. These developments come amid a heightened focus on safety following the recent AI171 crash involving a Boeing 787 Dreamliner on the Ahmedabad-London route, which tragically claimed 270 lives.
According to Air India, flight AI2470 was impacted by a bird strike that was discovered after the aircraft safely landed in Pune. Following standard safety protocol, the aircraft was immediately grounded, and the airline's engineering team commenced detailed inspections to assess any potential damage. In addition to AI2470, eight other flights were cancelled as part of the airline’s ongoing safety and operational review. Of these, four were domestic routes: AI874 from Pune to Delhi, AI456 from Ahmedabad to Delhi, AI2872 from Hyderabad to Mumbai, and AI571 from Chennai to Mumbai.
The remaining four affected services were international flights. These included AI906 from Dubai to Chennai, AI308 from Delhi to Melbourne, AI309 from Melbourne to Delhi, and AI2204 from Dubai to Hyderabad. The cancellations, the airline said, were necessary to comply with enhanced maintenance checks and to manage fleet availability during a period of increased scrutiny. To mitigate inconvenience, Air India announced that its ground operations teams were working to accommodate passengers on alternate flights as quickly as possible. The airline also extended the option of full refunds or complimentary rescheduling to those affected.
In a related development, Air India on Thursday announced that it would temporarily reduce its international flight schedule by 38 services per week and suspend operations on three overseas routes between June 21 and July 15. The announcement followed the airline’s earlier decision to cut wide-body international flights to 15 percent of normal operations during this period.
Also Read: Ahmedabad AI crash: Week on, recoveries done, debris to be moved
This move comes as the airline conducts rigorous safety inspections, particularly on its Boeing 787 Dreamliner fleet, following the devastating AI171 crash near Ahmedabad on June 12. The flight, en route to London, was carrying 242 people, including 230 passengers, 10 crew members, and 2 pilots. Only one passenger survived—the sole survivor, an Indian-origin British national, was seated near the emergency exit in seat 11A.
The intensified inspections have also been necessitated by longer flight durations caused by recent airspace closures in the Middle East due to the ongoing Iran-Israel conflict, which continues to disrupt international flight paths and schedules. Air India’s CEO and Managing Director, Campbell Wilson, issued a statement assuring passengers that the airline’s proactive safety checks are designed to restore passenger confidence and ensure the highest standards of operational integrity. He confirmed that pre-flight safety inspections are being implemented across the Boeing 787 fleet and, as a precautionary measure, on select Boeing 777 aircraft as well.
"Air India apologises to the passengers affected by these curtailments, and is proactively contacting affected passengers to offer re-accommodation on alternative flights, complimentary rescheduling or full refunds as per their preference," the airline said in an official statement. It added that revised schedules were being gradually updated on Air India’s website, mobile app, and through customer service channels. The airline reiterated its commitment to resuming full operations as soon as feasible, with the safety of passengers, crew, and aircraft remaining its top priority.
Also Read: Air India cuts flights on 16 routes, halts services in 3 cities
Follow us
