Domestic airlines operating Boeing jets have been instructed to conduct checks on fuel control switches that regulate fuel supply to the engines on those planes. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation said airlines had till July 21 to complete these checks and confirm compliance.
The inspection is mandatory for all India-registered Boeing aircraft, the DGCA said, underlining the aviation regulator’s focus on flight safety as a top priority, which is as it should be.
Only two Indian airlines operate the Dreamliner – Air India and IndiGo. The former has around 30, including the 787-8 and -9 variants. The latter has just begun flying the 787-9.
Air India has completed checks on 50 per cent of its Dreamliner fleet starting Saturday, sources told NDTV, and no malfunctions had been found in the fuel switch’s locking mechanism.
Similar checks have been completed for most of Air India Express’ Boeing 737 Max fleet, sources said, and no defects had been found in those planes either.
The DGCA notification follows concern over a preliminary report into the June 12 Air India crash, in which a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner crashed 32 seconds after take-off from Ahmedabad airport.
The report indicated the plane crashed because fuel control switches – designed to be immobile unless the pilot deliberately flips them – moved from the ‘RUN’ to the ‘CUTOFF’ positions, meaning fuel supply was stopped, the plane lost thrust, and fell to the ground.
Following the release of that report (late Friday/early Saturday), Etihad Airways and other major airlines have advised pilots operating Dreamliners to “exercise caution” when handling the aircraft’s fuel control switches. The Dubai-based airline also ordered a fleet-wide inspection – citing an “abundance of caution” – of the locking mechanisms on these switches.
The directive, dated July 12 and reviewed by NDTV, instructs engineers to check whether the left and right fuel control switches on Boeing 787 aircraft can be moved between ‘CUTOFF’ and ‘RUN’ without lifting the locking mechanism. If the switches move without lifting, the locking feature is considered faulty, and the Thrust Control Module, or TCM, must be replaced.
A similar procedure has been advised for Indian airlines.
