The airline said it is proceeding with caution after the crash of a Boeing Dreamliner last week and apologized to customers for the cancellations.
An Air India Boeing 777-300ER (Photo: AirlineGeeks | Katie Zera)
Air India is temporarily dropping some international flights in the aftermath of a Boeing 787 crash last week that killed at least 270 people.
The airline said Thursday that it is carrying out “enhanced pre-flight safety checks” on its Dreamliners and 777s, which will reduce their availability for service. As a result, some routes are being suspended, while others will operate with reduced frequency.
India’s Economic Times reported that the cuts will scale back Air India’s international widebody service by 15%.
The changes will begin Saturday and remain in place until at least July 15, the carrier said.
Three routes will be completely suspended: Delhi to Nairobi, Kenya, currently flown four times a week; Amritsar, India, to London Gatwick, flown three times weekly; and Goa to London Gatwick, also flown three times weekly.
Many more routes will see a reduction in frequency. This includes service between Air India’s hub in Delhi and major airports like London Heathrow, Paris, Sydney, Seoul, and Tokyo.
An Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner (Photo: AirlineGeeks | William Derrickson)
For North America, service between Delhi and Toronto will be reduced from 13 times a week to seven times a week; Delhi and Vancouver from seven times weekly to five times weekly; Delhi and San Francisco from 10 times weekly to seven times weekly; Delhi and Chicago from seven times weekly to three times weekly; and Delhi and Washington Dulles from five times weekly to three times weekly.
“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.
Air India and India’s national civil aviation authority are investigating the cause of the June 12 crash with the assistance of experts from the U.S. and the U.K. All but one of the 242 people on board the flight, which was bound for London Gatwick, were killed when the 787 lost altitude and hit the campus of a medical college in Ahmedabad. Dozens of people on the ground were also killed.
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