In a significant move to bolster aviation safety, India’s primary regulatory body, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), has instructed Air India to meticulously reinspect the Ram Air Turbine (RAT) stowage on all Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft. This directive specifically targets planes that have recently undergone a replacement of their Power Conditioning Module (PCM), a vital electrical component responsible for managing and distributing the aircraft’s power.
Simultaneously, the DGCA has escalated its concerns directly to the U.S. aircraft manufacturing giant, Boeing. The regulator has demanded a comprehensive report detailing preventive measures to address incidents of uncommanded RAT deployment, a critical issue that has recently plagued Air India’s 787 fleet.
These urgent actions stem from a series of alarming events, including two successive incidents involving Air India’s Boeing 787 aircraft. These events have prompted the Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP) to write to the Civil Aviation Minister, advocating for the grounding of Air India’s entire B787 fleet and calling for a special audit of the airline.
One incident occurred on October 4, when the RAT spontaneously deployed on Air India’s Amritsar-Birmingham flight (AI-117) just before landing. While the aircraft landed safely, the uncommanded deployment of an emergency system raised immediate red flags. A few days later, on October 9, flight AI-154 from Vienna to Delhi, also a Boeing 787, was diverted to Dubai after a sudden autopilot failure and a cascade of other technical malfunctions.
For context, the Ram Air Turbine (RAT) is an indispensable emergency power source on an aircraft. It automatically deploys in critical situations such as a dual engine failure or a complete electrical or hydraulic system breakdown, utilizing wind speed to generate essential power for the aircraft’s systems.
A senior DGCA official confirmed the directive to Air India, stating, “Air India has been advised to reinspect the RAT for stowage for all the aircraft, whose PCM module was replaced in the recent past.” The official added that a thorough investigation into the incidents is currently underway.
The Power Conditioning Module (PCM) is a crucial electrical unit that converts, regulates, and distributes electric power from the aircraft’s main power generation system to various onboard components. Any anomaly in this module could have widespread implications for aircraft systems.
Despite the severity of the Dubai diversion, Air India had publicly refuted claims of an electrical failure on the Boeing 787 involved. However, the DGCA’s subsequent directives suggest a deeper concern within the regulatory body.
Beyond immediate inspections, the DGCA has also instructed Air India to review the ‘D’ Check work package – a comprehensive maintenance overhaul – for any discrepancies related to PCM module changes. Regarding the Amritsar-Birmingham incident, where the RAT deployed at 400 feet during landing, Boeing-recommended maintenance procedures were reportedly followed, and the aircraft was cleared for service after no discrepancies were found.
Nonetheless, the DGCA is pressing Boeing for critical information. This includes a detailed report on preventive measures for unexpected RAT deployments and comprehensive data on similar incidents globally involving Boeing 787 series aircraft, as documented in Boeing’s Fleet Team Digest. The regulator has also requested any service difficulty reports from worldwide operators following PCM module replacements.
The Federation of Indian Pilots’ letter to the Civil Aviation Minister painted a more severe picture of the Vienna-Delhi flight diversion. They reported that the Boeing 787 experienced “failures across critical systems,” including autopilots, Instrument Landing System (ILS), flight directors (FDs), and a degradation of the flight control system, leading to a complete loss of autoland capability. The pilots were forced to manually fly the aircraft at night to Dubai due to these extensive electrical malfunctions and the unavailability of flight directors, highlighting significant safety concerns.
This heightened scrutiny comes after a tragic incident on June 12, when an Air India Boeing 787-8 (flight AI171 to London Gatwick) crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad, resulting in the deaths of 260 people, including 241 passengers. This devastating event underscores the critical importance of robust safety protocols and thorough investigations into aircraft system malfunctions.