DGCA forms team to review Dreamliner safety

NEW DELHI: With Japanese airlines grounding all their Boeing 787 aircraft for thorough checks, India has decided to do a safety review of the aircraft as Air India has also been facing technical glitches in its Dreamliners. 

The DGCA ( Directorate General of Civil Aviation) on Wednesday formed a technical panel to examine the issues affecting AI's six B-787s, but as of now there is no move to ground them. 

While AI maintains that it has so far not faced any issue that affects safety on the Dreamliner, the airline's engineers and pilots are checking the aircraft before each flight. It will do as advised by Boeing or US Federal Aviation Administration as DGCA will also base its recommendations on the basis of what these two say. DGCA chief Arun Mishra said, "We are taking all details from Boeing and AI. As of now there is no move to ground the Dreamliners here but we are constantly monitoring the situation," Mishra said. 

All Nippon Airways and Japan Airlines have grounded their 24 B-787s for thorough checks following major problems like fuel leaks and a battery problem triggering a cockpit error message that forced some pilots to land in southwestern Japan. 

AI chief Rohit Nandan said, "None of those issues have so far been such that they affect passenger safety. We had some time back called a special team from Boeing for addressing the issues we face with our B-787s. Our engineers and flight safety department is reviewing these aircraft before each flight. As of now there is no plan to ground the B-787 but we are watching the situation very closely and are in constant touch with Boeing. We will not hesitate in taking any step in the interest of passenger safety." AI currently has six B-787s and uses it on both domestic and international routes.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/DGCA-forms-team-to-review-Dreamliner-safety/articleshow/18055014.cms

DGCA advised airlines not to follow SpiceJet's 2013 low fare scheme

NEW DELHI: Regulators in India are known to crack down when prices go up. The rationale being that sky-high prices hurt consumers and help companies make supernormal profits. But for the first time in India, a regulator has stepped in to prevent companies from cutting fares. 

Budget carrier SpiceJetBSE -0.77 % may have brought cheer to fliers with a scheme offering a million tickets for 2013 each, but the aviation regulator has ensured that other airlines, who wanted to follow SpiceJet, didn't go through with their planned cuts. 

Officials in the aviation ministry said the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) contacted all airline CEOs in the evening of January 11, the day SpiceJet launched the three-day scheme. He advised them against succumbing to the trend. 

"The regulator told them that regular fliers would take advantage of the scheme rather than new ones, in turn poaching others' traffic," an official involved in communicating with airlines told ET. 

High airfares throughout 2012 due to grounding ofKingfisher AirlinesBSE -0.07 % caused passengers to opt out of air travel, leading to a fall in traffic for the first time since 2009. 

Airline profitability improved and some of them earned higher margins. But with fliers preferring cheaper options, airlines had to do something to bring them back, especially from February-June, which is the lean season. 

DGCA officials said they thought it right to intervene as fares would have become distorted and they had to protect the industry from bleeding any further, just like they do when fliers complain of sky-high ticket prices during peak seasons. 

The move explains why IndiGo and GoAir, which were about to announce discounts, withdrew their plans. 

Neil Mills, the CEO of SpiceJet, found it difficult to withdraw as the company had already advertised through newspapers and a nationwide press release. 

While Air India CMD Rohit Nandan termed the SpiceJet scheme "suicidal", a senior executive from Jet AirwaysBSE 0.63 %termed it "absurd", saying they wouldn't match it. 

"We decided not to follow them as I didn't think one can even recover input costs on tickets priced at Rs 2000," Nandan told ET. 

The DGCA has been intervening in the functioning of airlines repeatedly since late 2010, either warning them against fare increases or setting up a monitoring cell to track ticket rates across the country. 

The aviation ministry, which controls the DGCA, has also intervened by telling airlines that it will take the final call in clearing aircraft purchases. 

The ministry constituted a fare-monitoring cell in November 2010 for the first time to protect consumers when airfares rose by 250-300% during peak Diwali season. 

It was then that airlines were asked to furnish a monthly fare chart on every offered route to ensure transparency. In July 2012, the aviation ministry said it would constitute another fare-monitoring unit to ensure greater transparency. This has upset foreign investors who have turned wary of investing in Indian airlines.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/transportation/airlines-/-aviation/dgca-advised-airlines-not-to-follow-spicejets-2013-low-fare-scheme/articleshow/18053547.cms

Kingfisher Airlines moves Supreme Court on Rs 234 crore TDS dispute

NEW DELHI: Grounded carrier Kingfisher AirlinesBSE 0.77 % moved the Supreme Court on Wednesday challenging a Karnataka High Court order of December 5 that directed it to pay about Rs 234 crore of income tax dues within six weeks. 

The Vijay Mallya-owned airline said it could not be asked to pay the amount as the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal had set aside the assessment order passed by the tax authorities. It also said "irreparable injury and harm" would be caused to the airline if it was asked to deposit the money. 

A three-judge bench, led by Chief Justice Altamas Kabirhas, said it will hear the plea on Monday. The high court had directed Kingfisher Airlines to pay up half of the tax dues for 2010-11 and 2011-2012 and furnish a bank guarantee for the remaining after the revenue department challenged the Tribunal's order. 

In its petition, Kingfisher said, "... since the assessing orders and CIT (A) orders have been set aside by the ITAT, there does not exist a valid demand in the eyes of the law.... The HC failed to appreciate that such a recovery will be without authority of law and hence will be illegal." 

The Tribunal has remanded the issue back to the assessing officer for a reassessment, the airline added. 

"... the impugned order will cause grave hardship to the petitioner and the public at large, in as much as the petitioner will not be able to revive its business, for which it is making serious efforts," the petition said. Kingfisher asked the Supreme Court to stay the high court order, claiming that it has already paid Rs 135 crore to the I-T department. 

The company said it was facing "financial crisis on account of reasons beyond its control", such as the spurt in crude prices, heavy taxes on aviation turbine fuel in India, and depreciation of the rupee". 

The petition said that the crisis at Kingfisher has been aggravated by the coercive actions taken by the I-T department since 2012. 

Kingfisher has a debt of Rs 7,057.08 crore. Its net loss widened to Rs 444.27 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2011, from Rs 253.69 crore in the same quarter of the previous fiscal. 

Its aircraft have been grounded since October 1 last year, when its pilots went on strike protesting non-payment of salaries. 

The government suspended the Kingfisher Airlines' licence after it failed to explain disruption of services. Kingfisher's licence expired end of last year following its inability to restart operations.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/transportation/airlines-/-aviation/kingfisher-airlines-moves-supreme-court-on-rs-234-crore-tds-dispute/articleshow/18055011.cms

Kingfisher moves SC for stay on TDS payment

New Delhi, Jan 16, 2013, DHNS

The cash-strapped Kingfisher Airlines on Wednesday urged the Supreme Court to stay a Karnataka High Court order directing it to deposit around Rs 185 crore with the Income Tax department, recovered as tax deducted at source (TDS) from its staff.

A three-judge bench presided over by Chief Justice Altamas Kabir agreed to hear on Monday the special leave petition filed by the company owned by Vijay Mallya against the HC’s order passed on December 5.

Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi mentioned the matter seeking urgent relief against a possible recovery and attachment proceedings by the Income Tax department.

He submitted that the order was likely to cause “irreparable injury and harm” as the airlines was already facing severe financial crisis on account of reasons beyond its control.

In its petition, Kingfisher challenged the order ordering it to deposit 50 per cent of the total amount of Rs 371 crore, which the company was allegedly required to remit to the I-T department as TDS from its employees and payments made towards company expenses. 
The HC had also asked the company to furnish bank guarantee for the remaining amount within six weeks.

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/305845/kingfisher-moves-sc-stay-tds.html

Kingfisher fails to provide details on financing revival plan

NEW DELHI: Grounded Kingfisher Airlines on Wednesday made another attempt to convince DGCA on its revival plans, but failed to provide any details on its funding which the aviation regulator wanted.

Kingfisher CEO Sanjay Agarwal met Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) Arun Mishra here for 45 minutes to apprise him of the prevailing scenario facing the airline, but sources said he gave no information about any commitment by the airline's parent company, UB Group, on financing the revival plan.

The sources said Agarwal told the regulator that the airline would be ready to resume operations from the Summer Schedule, that begins in April.

The Kingfisher chief said the airline has not received no-objection certificates from any of the airport operators, including the Airports Authority of India, though he claimed that some of the oil companies and aircraft leasing companies have given it a go-ahead.

Today's meeting comes days ahead of a crucial meeting of a consortium of bankers that have lent over Rs 7,500 crore to the now defunct airline.

The consortium has been refusing to lend any more money to the airline till the promoters bring in more funds. The airline suspended operations on October 11, last year and its operating licence lapsed on December 31.

In the recent past, civil aviation Ministry officials had made it clear that they were not satisfied by Kingfisher's plans to invest Rs 650 crore as it might not guarantee efficient and reliable services.

"The revival plan, which was submitted by the airline, had lot of issues regarding lenders and staff payment which we felt may not lead to reliable services," a senior officer had said, adding it had no provision for payment to airport operators.

Salaries and allowances of the staff have also been pending for over eight months now, while the airline owes money to airport operators, oil companies and other vendors.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/Kingfisher-fails-to-provide-details-on-financing-revival-plan/articleshow/18045027.cms

Flight service from Puducherry begins today

Stage is set for resuming flight service from the Puducherry airport on Thursday.

Spicejet aircraft will land here around 12.30 p.m. with passengers from Bangalore. After a brief stop over, it will carry passengers from Puducherry to Bangalore.

Around 35 passengers have booked tickets for both the destinations on Thursday. The Puducherry airport, controlled by the Airports Authority of India, had handled passenger flight from 1988 to 1992. After that it was used for landing charted flights and training.

http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-tamilnadu/flight-service-from-puducherry-begins-today/article4315167.ece

Dreamliners will continue to fly, says AI

It’s awaiting U.S. probe report on safety

Air India has ruled out any immediate action to ground Dreamliners even as it awaits a formal communication from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration or the manufacturer, Boeing, on the safety aspects of the new aircraft.

The Director-General of Civil Aviation is also planning to undertake a safety review although no complaint has been received on the functioning or operational capacity of the aircraft in the recent past. “There are no plans to ground the Dreamliners right now. They are functioning quite smoothly and efficiently on domestic and international routes,” a senior Civil Aviation Ministry official said here.

The safety review comes in view of glitches faced in some planes in the past.

The AI assertion comes hours after Japanese airlines ANA and JAL grounded all 24 of their Dreamliners following a series of technical problems. “We are in close touch with Boeing and Air India. Boeing will be giving us an update on the electrical problems some of these planes have suffered,” officials said.

“Air India and the Ministry are awaiting the findings of the FAA probe into the problems faced by Boeing 787s. There is nothing that can be done in the present situation. We have already carried out inspections on our aircraft on our own, including the lithium ion batteries,” the senior official said.

The U.S. aircraft major last Friday jointly announced investigations with the FAA after three Dreamliners owned by the Japanese carriers suffered malfunctions this month — an electrical fire, fuel leakage and a broken cockpit window.

Of the 27 B-787s ordered by AI in January 2006, six of them have been delivered and the airline operates flights to Dubai, Paris and Frankfurt with Dreamliners. Six more will join the AI fleet by December and the other jets will be inducted through 2016.

http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/dreamliners-will-continue-to-fly-says-ai/article4314538.ece

AI not to ground Dreamliners

There are no plans at present to ground Boeing 787 Dreamliner planes of Air India even though the DGCA proposes to carry out a safety review of the new aircraft, officials said.

“There are no plans to ground the Dreamliner right now,” a senior Civil Aviation Ministry official said when asked about the technical glitches some of these planes have faced in the recent past.

The comment came hours after two Japanese airlines — ANA and JAL — grounded all 24 of their Dreamliner planes.

“We are in consultation with Boeing and Air India. Boeing will be giving us an update on the electrical problems these planes have suffered,” the official said.

http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/ai-not-to-ground-dreamliners/article4314904.ece

Boeing Dreamliner hit by two more mishaps in Japan

The FAA review will put emphasis on the 787’s electrical systems, cover design, manufacture and assembly

Washington/New York: The US ordered a wide review of Boeing Co.’s latest passenger jet, the 787 Dreamliner, citing “concern” over a spate of technical problems in recent weeks.

Regulators said the Dreamliner remained safe to fly but a thorough examination was needed to identify the root cause of the problems including a fire on a parked 787 on Monday.

“There are concerns about recent events involving the Boeing 787. That is why today we are conducting a comprehensive review,” transportation secretary Ray LaHood told a news conference.

The review will put an emphasis on the 787’s advanced electrical systems and cover their design, manufacture and assembly, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said.

The move comes on top of a separate probe by US safety investigators into a battery fire which caused “serious damage” to an empty Japan Airlines Co. Ltd 787 jet at Boston airport on Monday.

Adding to incidents that have tested confidence in the world’s first mainly carbon-composite airliner, the jet suffered a cracked cockpit window and an oil leak on separate flights in Japan on Friday.

The 787 is Boeing’s newest jet and its boldest effort to revolutionize commercial aviation by using new technology to cut the fuel cost for operating the plane by 20%.

Each lightweight jet has a list price of $207 million.

Airlines are pleased with the savings, and have so far given the plane their approval, both by ordering more than 800 jets and mostly sticking by it through the current spate of troubles.

But Boeing already is far over its budget and more than three years behind schedule in delivering Dreamliner planes.

The wide-ranging review by US officials has the potential to deal a setback to Boeing’s newest jet, especially if it leads to a costly design change.

It is also a significant test for the recently-appointed chief executive of Boeing’s commercial airplanes division, Ray Conner, who also attended Friday’s Washington news conference.

Conner, who was previously Boeing’s commercial sales chief, said the company was committed to making the plane as reliable as possible and that its backup systems had been working well.

“We have complete confidence in the 787 and so do our customers,” Conner said.

The Federal Aviation Administration wants to maintain public confidence in the Dreamliner, FAA Administrator Michael Huerta said.

LaHood said he would not hesitate to fly on a 787 himself.

Boeing confidence

A growing media storm about the 787 glitches echoes global publicity a year ago over wing cracks on the A380 superjumbo, built by Boeing’s European rival Airbus SAS.

The A380 has also been deemed safe to fly and few airlines have reported a dip in bookings, but the problems are expected to end up costing Airbus up to 500 million euros in repairs.

In both cases, everyday glitches have been swept up in the wider storm of publicity and attracted unusual attention, along with more serious problems.

The 787 Dreamliner made its first commercial flight in late-2011 after a series of production delays put deliveries more than three years behind schedule. By the end of last year, Boeing had sold 848 Dreamliners. It now has 50 in service.

Conner said the recent issues had not been caused by either outsourcing production or boosting it too quickly.

“We have complete confidence in the 787 and so do our customers,” he said.

The 787 makes extensive use of electrical components to perform tasks previously carried out by heavier equipment such as hydraulics.

In India—where state-owned Air India Ltd. has taken delivery of six Dreamliner jets and has more on order— a senior official at the aviation regulator said there was concern at the recent spate of Dreamliner glitches.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation has not ordered any Dreamliner checks for now, but is waiting for a safety report on Monday’s fire from the US National Transportation Safety Board, the official said.

http://www.livemint.com/Industry/NTX2AsrRn8BL79S768cYhM/Boeing-Dreamliner-hit-by-two-more-mishaps-in-Japan.html?ref=related

Air India to invite fresh bids for Nariman Point building

The move is part of a larger exercise by the airline to raise money by renting, redeveloping or selling its properties

Bangalore/Mumbai: Air India Ltd will invite fresh bids from potential tenants for some floors in its 23-storey commercial tower in south Mumbai’s Nariman Point business district, two Air Indiaofficials said.

The state-run airline will soon put out a so-called request for proposal offering nine-year leases and seeking price bids, said the two officials, who declined to be named. State Bank of India, the country’s largest lender, quoted the best price in the first round of bidding in October and took up four floors on leases ranging from three to five years.

India’s oldest airline is offering 15 floors on lease at a minimum asking rate of around Rs.300 per sq. ft with additional charges for space on the higher floors. The airline has decided to retain only four floors—the ground, 21th, 23rd and 24th floors—of the building, also its corporate headquarters.

Leasing out space in the Nariman Point building is part of a larger exercise by Air India to raise money by renting, selling or redeveloping its properties in various cities. Air India plans to monetize around 105 properties across cities in India as well three in Tokyo and London, Mint first reported in November. The debt-laden company expects to raise at least Rs.500 crore in the current fiscal and Rs.5,000 crore in 10 years from the effort.

Air India had Rs.47,226 crore of debt as on 31 July on its books, and accumulated losses of Rs.27,000 crore over the past five years.

The government in April last year approved a Rs.30,000 crore package to bail out the loss-making airline, including an upfront equity infusion of Rs.6,750 crore and assured equity support of Rs.23,481 crore until 2020-21.

“Leasing out the floors of iconic Nariman Point is a part of a turnaround plan and to boost the ancillary revenues. Air India is trying to get revenue from non-core operations too,” said one of the Air India executives cited above.

The airline, which said last year that it was moving its headquarters to New Delhi from Mumbai, plans to allow companies to advertise on the back of boarding passes and on the headrests of seats on its planes, too, as part of the revenue raising effort, this official said.

In the Nariman Point building, the Air India booking offices on the ground floor will remain and so will the conference room on the 23rd floor. The operations of the airline would largely be moved to Santa Cruz, near the domestic airport.

Besides State Bank of India, the Sahara group and the Directorate General of Shipping took part in the first round of bidding, but their bids were rejected by Air India, according to the two officials cited above.

Property analysts said the building, a Nariman Point landmark, measures around 220,000 sq ft. Given that building efficiency is higher in Nariman Point than new business locations such as Bandra-Kurla Complex, Rs.300 per sq. ft may not be an unreasonable price although it is on the higher side, the analyst said.

Efficiency in Nariman Point would be around 85% while in BKC it would be 65-67%. Efficiency is typically calculated as the ratio between built-up area and the carpet area. The higher the efficiency, the less is the difference between the two; it implies the wastage is less.

Ravi Ahuja, executive director at property advisory Cushman and Wakefield, said a lot of office space is lying vacant in Mumbai, with nearly half a million sq. ft in BKC alone.

“The vacancy levels in Nariman Point would be similar and demand would depend on the availability of large spaces of 20,000-40,000 sq. ft, amenities and ample car park,” said Ahuja.

Lease rates in BKC hover around Rs.250-260 per sq. ft with the exception of Maker Maxity, where rates are in the range of Rs.300-320 per sq. ft and upwards. A January note by property advisory CB Richard Ellissaid concerns over cost reduction and a cautious approach by occupiers had a negative impact on leasing activity across key markets in India.

“With major corporates continuing to review expansion plans and focusing on improving existing space utilization to control costs, key markets across India witnessed a decline in absorption of prime office space during 2012 to 26 million sq. ft compared to 35 million sq. ft in 2011,” CB Richard Ellis said.

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Air India’s average fleet age shrinks from 15 years to 2.5

Airline’s planes not only make it one of the world’s youngest fleets, but also cut maintenance costs by as much as 43%

Mumbai: Air India Ltd might be the country’s oldest airline but the age of its fleet has reduced to 2.5 years, which not only makes it one of the world’s youngest fleets but also reduces maintenance cost by as much as 43%.

This is in sharp contrast to the average fleet age of some 14 years when Indian Airlines and Air India were merged into one entity in 2007.

At the time of the merger, the erstwhile Air India flew double-decked jumbo planes—Boeing 747-400—bought in 1993, and Indian Airlines was flying Airbus planes bought in 1989.

Air India has retired most of the older aircraft and kept only a few for VIP flights that include flying the nation’s President and Prime Minister, for which the government paid itRs.532 crore in 2011.

The sudden youthfulness is largely because of Air India’s mega order of 111 planes—68 from Boeing Co. and 43 from Airbus SAS. Air India received the latest and sixth Boeing 787 Dreamliner on 4 January. The state-owned firm had ordered 27 Dreamliner aircraft, which were originally scheduled to start joining its fleet by September 2008. At present, out of 112 planes, 87 are new with an average age of 2.5 years.

Jet Airways (India) Ltd, the domestic rival airline, operates a fleet of 100 aircraft with an average age of about 6 years. Singapore Airlines’ fleet has an average age is 6.4 years. Air India’s rival in Dubai, Emirates Airline, flies a fleet that has an average age of five years and the US’ top airlines have an average fleet age of 12 years.

The reduced age is helping Air India, which had Rs.47,226 crore in debt as on 31 July, attract passengers and turn some of its loss-making routes into profitable flights.

It also saves hugely on maintenance cost. The maintenance cost of Air India’s fleet was around Rs.1,400 crore in 2011-12 but is now estimated to have dropped to Rs.800 crore, a 43% savings, according to two executives.

“The route profitability analysis of November-December 2012 depicts far more healthier trend than corresponding period of 2011. Inducting Dreamliner planes was a game-changing strategy and we are also planning to take one by end of January and one by 25 February,” said one of the executives. Both officials requested anonymity.

“Traditionally, the Delhi-Frankfurt route was loss-making. When we replaced Boeing 777 LR planes with Dreamliners, the route started making a marginal profit,” the first official said.

The Air India management has been trying hard to turn around the airline, with accumulated losses ofRs.27,000 crore over the past five years. Between April and October, 95 flights on its network were meeting cost of fuel and operations and only 12 services were meeting the total cost.

The biggest benefit of having a young fleet reflects in the firm’s profit and loss account. Air India registered positive Ebitda for November and December on a stand-alone basis. Ebitda, or earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, is an indicator of profitability.

“Going by the current trend, January would also post an Ebitda positive. In November, Air India carried 44,288 passengers against the November average of 41,434. The seat occupancy of November had also shot up to 78.2% compared to 73.5% in November 2011,” the second executive said. “Some of the Dreamliner planes are deployed in Delhi, Chennai, Bangalore and Kolkata. These routes have also turned cash positive.”

He said the airline carried 46,656 passengers in December against the average of 41,899 for the month. The airline earned a record revenue of Rs.48 crore on 21 December.

The second official, however, admitted that the profitable performance would be restricted for three months—November, December and January.

Air India is expected to post a loss of Rs.4,270 crore for the year to 31 March, Mint reported on 7 December, citing an internal estimate, compared with a loss of Rs.6,865 crore in 2010-11.

The government approved a Rs.30,000 crore package to bail out the airline in April. This includes an upfront equity infusion of Rs.6,750 crore and assured equity support of Rs.23,481 crore till 2020-21. Banks have recast their exposure to the airline, resulting in savings of Rs.1,000 crore a year.

However, the aviation ministry is not complacent. It said on 3 January that it has constituted a five-member committee headed by Ravindra H. Dholakia of the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, to suggest ways of cutting costs and utilizing resources optimally at Air India.

Although the committee set up by aviation minister Ajit Singh has two months to submit its report, it has been asked for immediate recommendations that can be implemented quickly.

Not all are thrilled by Air India’s young fleet.

Nawal Taneja, professor emeritus in the department of aviation at Ohio State University, who writes on aviation, said there should other priorities for Air India than fleet.

“Air India needs to expand, quickly but strategically. That means deciding first the network and the focus on segments of travellers. Second, comes alliance partners to serve the network and customer segments selected. Fleet would be number three,” Taneja said.

He said that even the three United Arab Emirates-based airlines—Emirates Airlines, Etihad Airways and Qatar Airways—concluded that they cannot grow by staying independent and last year engaged with partners. “So not only is getting into an alliance is a high priority, but also at the level of entry and the status of membership with respect to decision making. Finally, will come the decision on what kind of brand positioning is feasible and viable,” Taneja added.

The first Air India executive quoted above said his airline has renewed negotiations with global grouping of airlines Star Alliance Services GmbH.

In 2011, after two years of preparations, Star Alliance suspended Air India’s entry, saying that the airline had not met some conditions.

Rival Jet Airways started wooing Star Alliance, which is keen to have a partner from India to stay ahead of other grouping such as Oneworld and Skyteam.

“We have (again) started talking to Star Alliance. There is no additional financial liabilities as we had paid them in the past,” the second Air India executive said. “We are getting our act right.”

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India reviews Dreamliner safety: DGCA

DGCA says it has no plans to ground the Dreamliner

New Delhi: India’s aviation regulator said on Wednesday it would conduct a safety review of the Boeing Co. Dreamliner aircraft purchased by Air India Ltd after Japan’s two biggest airlines decided to ground their fleets.

“We will review the situation in consultation with Boeing and Air India,” Arun Mishra, the director-general of civil aviation, told AFP.

Boeing’s troubled next-generation model has suffered a series of glitches that have prompted investigations by aviation regulators in Japan and the US, although Boeing insists the plane is safe.

In the latest incident, an All Nippon Airways Co. flight was forced into an emergency landing in southwestern Japan with the airline saying cockpit instruments had shown there was smoke in an electrical compartment.

Both ANA and its rival Japan Airlines Co.—which are among Boeing’s biggest customers for the Dreamliner—said they would ground their entire 787 fleets pending safety checks.

However, Mishra said that “there were no plans to ground the Dreamliner right now” in India.

“I am in touch with Boeing and they are going to give me an update on the electrical problems they suffered in Japan,” he added.

Air India purchased 27 Dreamliners as part of a 2005 multi-billion-dollar project, with the first plane delivered to New Delhi last September. Six planes have so far been delivered and the remaining 21 are expected to arrive by 2016.

The aircraft is seen as becoming the mainstay of loss-making Air India’s global operations and airline officials hope it will attract new customers.

Considered a milestone in the aviation industry with its use of lightweight composite materials and electronics instead of aluminium and hydraulics, some 50 of the US aerospace giant’s 787s are in service worldwide.

Boeing, which outsourced much of the production to Japanese and other contractors, says the plane’s impressive fuel efficiency represents a revolution in aircraft design.

http://www.livemint.com/Politics/rU4kRkP6YPK6z0x7dfZ4gO/India-reviews-Dreamliner-safety-DGCA.html?ref=related