Senior management at Air India has reached out directly to Boeing 787 pilots following a reported fuel control switch issue on a Dreamliner aircraft, with the airline initiating precautionary checks across the fleet.
In an internal email sent to all Boeing 787 pilots, Manish Uppal, Senior Vice President – Operations, said Air India's engineering team has escalated the matter to Boeing for priority evaluation.
"Following the reported defect involving a fuel control switch on one of our B787 aircraft, engineering team has escalated the matter to Boeing for priority evaluation," Uppal wrote.
The development comes after an Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner operating from London Heathrow to Bengaluru was grounded after the flight crew reported that the aircraft's left fuel control switch failed to remain locked in the RUN position during engine start-up and moved toward CUTOFF. The pilot's report prompted the airline to take the aircraft out of service and notify regulators, with Air India and Boeing beginning priority evaluations of the issue and inspections of fuel control switches across its 787 fleet.
Pending Boeing’s response, Air India engineers have begun fleet-wide re-inspection of the Fuel Control Switch (FCS) latch, a move the airline described as being undertaken out of "abundance of caution". According to the email, inspections completed so far have not revealed any adverse findings.
The communication also reminded pilots to promptly report any defects observed during operations and to ensure that all required procedures are completed before accepting an aircraft for service.
The email underscores Air India's emphasis on safety oversight following the recent fuel switch incident, even as the airline said normal operations continue and no systemic issues have been detected so far.
Air India is working closely with Boeing as the evaluation continues.
