Following the fatal Air India 171 crash, more Indian air travellers say they will factor in aircraft type while booking flights — 41 per cent now, up from just 10 per cent in 2022, according to a survey by LocalCircles, a social media-based community polling firm. Over half the respondents (56 per cent) also supported grounding the Boeing 787-8 until safety concerns are resolved, the survey said.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Tuesday said no major safety concerns have been found in the recent surveillance conducted on Air India’s Boeing 787 fleet following the crash on June 12, which killed all but one of the 242 people on board. At the same time, the apex civil aviation authority raised concerns over recent maintenance-related issues reported by the airline in a meeting with senior Air India group officials.
Around 19,600 respondents, all claiming to be air travellers, answered the question, “If you plan to undertake air travel in the coming months, what all would you be looking at before booking/travel?” While only 10 per cent chose “aircraft type” in a 2022 LocalCircles poll, the latest survey showed that figure has jumped to 41 per cent, indicating that aircraft type is becoming a growing consideration for Indian flyers.
Still, aircraft type ranked lower than other factors such as airfare (73 per cent), flight timings (64 per cent), airline (59 per cent), and flight connections and duration (41 per cent).
In response to whether the Indian government should “consider grounding the 787-8 aircraft till the issues are sorted,” 56 per cent of 20,742 respondents said “yes,” while 34 per cent opposed grounding without clear evidence of a problem. About 10 per cent remained undecided.
Of the over 40,000 total responses received across both questions, 61 per cent were from men and 31 per cent from women. Respondents were largely urban, with 47 per cent from tier-1 cities, 32 per cent from tier-2, and the remaining 21 per cent from other towns and rural areas.
Following the crash last week, the DGCA had directed Air India to carry out additional maintenance inspections on all 33 of its 787s. The enhanced checks ordered include a one-time pre-departure check of aircraft systems and parameters including fuel parameters monitoring and associated system, cabin air compressor and associated systems, electronic engine control system, engine fuel-driven actuator and oil system, hydraulic system serviceability, and take-off parameters.
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On Saturday, Air India announced that the checks were being performed, and informed passengers that some of these could “lead to higher turnaround time and potential delays on certain long-haul routes especially those to airports with operating curfews”.
