Air India Boeing 787 safety scrutiny

In late July 2026, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration issued an airworthiness directive after reports that door‑assist handles on certain Boeing 787‑8, 787‑9 and 787‑10 models could become loose. Air India responded by installing the required modifications on its fleet of 35 Dreamliners during routine maintenance, emphasizing that the work was precautionary and that operations continued without grounding any aircraft.

A few days later, a Boeing 787 operated by Air India crashed shortly after take‑off from Ahmedabad, killing all but one of the 242 people on board. India’s civil aviation ministry reported that Boeing’s examination found the fuel‑control button to be normal, shifting investigative focus away from that component toward other possible causes, including pilot actions and the aircraft’s thrust‑control module. The two events illustrate an ongoing safety review of Air India’s 787 fleet, from regulatory‑driven upgrades to a high‑profile accident investigation.