A CALL FOR A NEW VISION

The Ahmedabad air crash on 12 June 2025 delivers a solemn message: post-incident re- sponse culture needs to be replaced with a proactive approach grounded in pre-emptive safety measures.

- VISHAL DUGGAL

Following the tragic crash of London Gatwick-bound Air India Flight A1171, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, on 12th June 2025, in Ahmedabad, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has initiated a range of comprehensive safety measures both across the aviation sector in general and specifically targeting Air India's operations. It is intriguing why this reactive stance comes to the fore only in the aftermath of a disaster, whereas long-term safety culture must be embedded into the very fabric of India’s aviation sector. Sadly, noncompliance with safety standards, operational bottlenecks, and discrepancies in the functioning of commercial aircraft are widespread across the Indian aviation sector. Several aircraft accidents have highlighted persistent aviation safety challenges.

The catastrophic Air India Express Flight 812, involving a Boeing 737-800 in Mangalore on 22 May 2010 killed 158 of 166 people on board when the aircraft overshot the runway, plunged into a gorge, and caught fire due to the captain’s failure to abort an unstable approach, exacerbated by inadequate airport infrastructure. Air Marshal (Retd) B.N. Gokhale was associated with the Court of Inquiry into the Mangalore air crash.

On 28 June 2018, a private jet, Beechcraft King Air C90, operated by UY Aviation, crashed in Ghatkopar, Mumbai, killing all five on board and one on the ground, attributed to maintenance issues and pilot error in adverse weather. Investigations by India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) and courts of inquiry issued recommendations, such as improving runway safety areas, mandating frangible structures at tabletop airports, and enhancing pilot training protocols. However, key recommendations remain unimplemented as of 2025.