Air India had two safety incidents on the same day. The engine fire happened mid-air. The tail strike happened on a runway. Both involved planes the airline can’t afford to replace.
On Thursday night, flight AI 2802 — an Airbus A320neo from Bengaluru — declared an emergency landing on final approach to Delhi after the cockpit picked up a fire warning from the left engine. It landed safely on runway 29R at 9:30 pm with 171 passengers. Earlier the same day, AI 2651, an A321 from Delhi to Bengaluru, scraped its tail on the runway during a go-around forced by wake turbulence from a departing Boeing 747. Pilots off-rostered. Both aircraft grounded. DGCA opened two probes.
The official line will treat these as separate incidents. The numbers won’t.
What ₹26,765 Crore Didn’t Buy
Last week, Singapore Airlines’ annual report revealed the figure Air India hadn’t published itself: a $2.8 billion FY26 loss — the biggest since the Tata takeover in 2022, more than double FY25. The losses got pinned on the Iran war, Pakistan airspace closures, and jet fuel above $100. All true. None of it is the whole story.
The Vihaan.AI plan promised 300 aircraft and 30% market share by 2027. Midway through, Air India is cutting 27% of international flights from June, flying 40% fewer international routes and 5% fewer domestic ones than a year ago. Fleet renewal is moving slower than the existing fleet is aging. CEO Campbell Wilson has already resigned. DGCA fined the airline ₹1 crore in February for flying an aircraft with an expired airworthiness certificate — the eighth such instance.
The Pattern, Not the Coincidence
Across Indian carriers, 1,200 technical snags in three years. Inside Air India alone since February: a cargo hold fire warning, a fuel control switch fault, an A320 flown eight times on expired papers, a 260-death crash from June 2025 still awaiting its final report. The Tata board has been asked for another ₹10,000 crore — partly to build the in-house engineering arm the airline still doesn’t have.
Two incidents in one day isn’t bad luck. It’s an old fleet flown harder than the maintenance budget allows. The $2.8 billion didn’t fix it. The next loss will have to.