UK Flags Safety Concern After Air India Dreamliner Incident

Britain’s aviation regulator has asked Air India to explain how a Boeing 787 Dreamliner that was later grounded in India for safety checks was allowed to take off from London despite a possible fault in a fuel control switch. The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has warned that regulatory action could follow if the airline fails to give a full explanation within a week.

According to a letter sent by the CAA to Air India on Tuesday, the regulator is seeking clarity on the circumstances under which the aircraft departed London on Sunday and how its airworthiness was ensured. The aircraft was grounded after landing in India when a pilot reported a possible defect in the fuel control switch.

Regulator tightens screws

The CAA said it is seeking a “detailed account” of all maintenance actions carried out to ensure the aircraft was safe to fly and to justify its release for service to Bengaluru. It also asked Air India to submit a comprehensive root-cause analysis of the incident and a preventive action plan to avoid similar issues across the airline’s Boeing 787 fleet.

In a statement, the CAA said its action was part of standard safety assurance procedures and that it routinely seeks information after an aircraft incident. Still, the warning of possible regulatory action underlines the seriousness with which the UK authority is treating the matter.

Air India defends decision

Air India said it had carried out a precautionary re-inspection of the fuel control switches and found no problems. The airline said it would respond to the UK regulator accordingly. In an internal memo issued on Wednesday, Air India said it had also checked fuel switches on all of its 33 Boeing 787 aircraft and found no issues.

The Indian civil aviation regulator said that during engine start-up in London, the crew noticed that the fuel control switch did not remain latched in the ‘run’ position on two occasions, but stayed stable on a third attempt. The crew then decided to operate the flight to India. Subsequent checks by the regulator found the switches to be functioning normally.

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Past crash casts long shadow

Fuel control switches remain a sensitive issue for Air India. They were at the centre of last year’s deadly Dreamliner crash in Gujarat, which killed 260 people and led to heightened scrutiny of the airline’s safety practices. The switches regulate the flow of fuel to the aircraft’s engines, making any anomaly a critical concern.

Boeing, which had earlier said it was cooperating with Air India on the incident, did not respond to a request for comment.

While both Air India and Indian regulators have maintained that no fault was ultimately found, the UK authority’s insistence on detailed explanations reflects lingering unease. For an airline still working to rebuild trust after a major tragedy, even a “precautionary” incident risks reinforcing doubts about whether safety decisions are being treated with the caution they deserve.

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