EXCLUSIVE-Air India technical incidents such as fuel leaks hit 14-month high

By Abhijith Ganapavaram and Aditya Kalra

NEW DELHI, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Technical incidents such as engine oil and fuel leaks affecting Air India flights reached their highest rate in at least 14 months in January, a company document shows, underscoring growing strain on the carrier's revamp ambitions.

India's second-largest airline has come under scrutiny from the country's safety regulator since a crash last year killed 260 people. It has since reported many safety lapses and in December admitted there was a "need for urgent improvements in process discipline, communication, and compliance culture".

In January, Air India recorded 1.09 technical incidents per 1,000 flights, quadrupling from levels of just 0.26 in December 2024, according to a document reviewed by Reuters that the carrier submitted to the Indian government in February. It did not provide earlier data.

Air India operated more than 17,500 flights in January and recorded 23 technical incidents on its international and domestic flights, according to the document, which is not public. At least 21 of those incidents were investigated formally by the airline.

"Systemic improvements (are) being introduced across flight ops, training, engineering quality, and procedural oversight to prevent recurrence," the Air India document said.

In a statement to Reuters, the airline said it has undertaken a "comprehensive program to strengthen technical reliability" across its operations and increased its critical spares inventory by over 30% to improve aircraft availability and reduce operational disruptions.

Air India added it has also made significant capital investments in engineering infrastructure and tooling to bolster its technical operations.

India's civil aviation ministry did not respond to Reuters' queries.

The document provided only selective comparisons to global airline industry norms based on data that is not publicly available and did not contain information on the airline's budget subsidiary Air India Express.

CHALLENGES GALORE

Air India, which is owned by Tata Group and Singapore Airlines SIAL.SI, has been struggling to rebuild its reputation and international network, and replace its ageing fleet that has been hobbled by supply chain delays.

Pakistan's airspace closure for Indian carriers due to diplomatic tensions has also hit it financially and forced it to shut some long-haul routes.

India's civil aviation ministry told lawmakers this month that 82.5% of the 166 Air India aircraft it analysed since January 2025 had recurring technical defects, compared with 36.5% for market leader IndiGo INGL.NS. The ministry gave no further details.

The Air India document said the technical incidents reported last month included engine stall warnings, issues related to flight control and hydraulics, and engine oil and fuel leaks.

There were incidents on both its Airbus AIR.PA and Boeing BA.N aircraft, including five instances of fuel or engine oil leaks in the month. A Dubai-Mumbai flight on arrival found that an engine's oil quantity was "low".

In another incident, a Delhi-Dubai flight on January 12 was forced to turn back after takeoff due to "no water in lavatory and galley," the document said.

Operational incidents including rejected takeoffs, flying at a restricted altitude and taking off with incorrect settings stood at 0.29 per 1,000 flights in January, more than double the level in December 2024, the document stated.

But there has been a "decrease in operational incidents" in recent months, it added.

TAKING STEPS

Air India has a fleet of 191 planes and has placed orders for over 500 more aircraft.

But revamping an airline owned by the Indian government until 2022 has been a major challenge, and Air India CEO Campbell Wilson has repeatedly complained that supply chain disruptions have delayed cabin retrofits.

The Air India February document detailed steps it is taking to "drive down" the various technical issues.

To control leakage events, it has introduced a periodic inspection program for its fleet of Airbus A320s, and replaced all steering-system hydraulic hoses on all its Boeing 777s.

A periodic air-conditioning leak-check programme has also been put in place, and Air India is implementing "targeted engineering actions" to "strengthen aircraft reliability and reduce incident rates", the document said.

Air India's issues have also attracted international regulatory scrutiny. Britain's aviation authority asked Air India to explain why a Boeing Dreamliner jet that was grounded on arrival in India for safety checks took off from London with a possibly faulty fuel switch, Reuters reported this month.

Air India replied that it had reminded pilots that they needed to operate in accordance with proper procedures and it had protectively replaced the throttle control module on the plane, according to a source with knowledge of the matter.

The UK Civil Aviation Authority did not respond immediately to a request for comment.