In yet another midway trouble for Air India , a flight from Delhi to Washington D.C. was grounded in Vienna after a routine inspection revealed a technical issue following refuelling on Wednesday. The airline later decided to delay the flight to carry out extended maintenance work to address the problem. Flightradar24 data of AI103 shows that it had departed from Delhi on July 2 and made a scheduled refuelling stop in Vienna, as part of Air India’s standard long-haul operational procedures. The flight was to take off for Washington which was scheduled on the same day, though it never happened.
The issues needed to be resolved before the flight could depart for Washington, D.C. As a result, the flight was delayed and took additional time. “Due to this, the Vienna to Washington, DC leg was cancelled, and passengers were disembarked,” the Air India spokesperson said.
The delay also affected the return flight, AI104 flight from Washington DC to Delhi (via Vienna) which was cancelled. According to Air India, passengers who were supposed to travel on this flight were either given other flight options or full refunds, depending on what they chose.
This latest incident adds to growing concerns over Air India’s domestic and international operations. In June this year, the tragic Air India crash in Ahmedabad had shook the nation.
Air India Crash
A test flight recreation of AI 171 by Air India, which crashed last month, has ruled out flight conditions alone as causing the accident. Instead, the simulation had shed light on dual engine failure. Air India pilots did a test flight as part of the investigation. The purpose of the simulation was to reenact the flight of the AI 171.
According to a Bloomberg report, the final flight conditions, like landing gear being out and wing flaps pulled back, did not cause the crash by themselves. Now, they suspect that both engines failing may be the real reason. The probability has shifted the focus to technical failure, which may be a possible cause, said the report.
The London-bound Air India plane crashed soon after taking off from Ahmedabad airport on June 12, killing all 242 people on board. The investigators and the airline are studying possible dual engine failure as a scenario that prevented the Boeing Co. 787 jet from staying airborne.
