Mumbai: The Airline Pilots’ Association of India (ALPA India) has warned the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) of systemic training failures and regulatory shortcomings following seven confirmed tailstrike incidents involving Airbus A321neo aircraft in India over six years. While five of these incidents happened on IndiGo flights, the union has also raised concerns against the airline's introduction of A321XLR.
The latest tailstrike event was recorded on August 21, when an IndiGo Airbus A321neo suffered a tailstrike during touchdown at Gorakhpur Airport in Uttar Pradesh. The incident led to the immediate grounding of the aircraft and the de-rostering of its flight crew pending an investigation. The union highlighted that this marks the seventh A321-family tailstrike since 2020 and the second at a tier-2 airfield in 2026 alone.
Tailstrike incidents under scrutiny
Similar incidents occurred previously, including two tailstrikes at Bengaluru airport, one by Air India in May this year during a go-around and another with IndiGo in September 2024 while landing. Similarly, IndiGo suffered two tailstrikes at Chennai airport during landings in March and June.
Earlier incidents include IndiGo at Ahmedabad during landing in June 2023 and Air India at Pune airport during takeoff in February 2020. In all the cases, the crew were taken off-roster till the inquiry continued.
ALPA India’s letter to AAIB Director General G.V.G. Yugandhar argued that repeated tailstrikes stem from institutional deficiencies rather than isolated pilot errors.
Training and regulatory concerns
The union highlighted the absence of any A321neo-specific full flight simulator facility, adding that pilots are trained on A321ceo simulators, which fail to replicate the distinct pitch dynamics of the NEO variant during the landing flare.
The union highlighted that the penalty worth Rs 20 lakh imposed on IndiGo by Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) following a cluster of incidents in 2023 is inadequate and represents less than 0.3% of the airline's daily revenue, which have failed to deter recurring incidents.
Moreover, it also raised concerns against the widespread commercial use of ‘Flap 3’ landings to reduce fuel consumption, claiming that it narrows pitch attitude margins during flare, compounding operational risks in hot weather and at short regional airfields like Gorakhpur.
Concerns over A321XLR introduction
The union expressed grave concerns regarding the imminent introduction of the extra long-range A321XLR into Indian fleets.
Notably, IndiGo has ordered 69 units of this model, followed by Air India, which awaits delivery of 15 XLRs. ALPA India highlighted that the aircraft integrates a 12,900-litre rear centre tank located just 1.2 metres forward of the tailstrike contact zone and a severe tailstrike could rupture the tank, introducing a catastrophic fire risk beneath a high-friction or hot-brake environment.
Moreover, it also added that the airlines lack dedicated, pressurised crew rest bunks like those on widebody aircraft as the A321XLR is certified for routes up to 8,700km.
“Extended multi-time-zone flights without adequate rest facilities degrade pilot psychomotor control during critical landing phases,” it said.
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Union seeks safety measures
ALPA India urged the AAIB to issue binding recommendations to the Ministry of Civil Aviation, including mandating physical tail skids and non-overridable tailstrike protection software on all A321neo/XLR deliveries.
Furthermore, the association called on the regulator to require an enhanced tailstrike pitch limit via extended landing gear designs for post-2030 deliveries – drawing direct inspiration from Boeing's B737 MAX 10 articulating gear configuration.
The union requested that the DGCA cease the standard practice of penalising and de-rostering flight crews for root-cause issues rooted in training infrastructure, warning that prolonged suspensions further degrade pilot proficiency.
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