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Days after Air India flight AI-171, a Boeing 787-8 from Ahmedabad to London, crashed shortly after takeoff, new developments continue to emerge.
Air India on Tuesday afternoon cancelled its Ahmedabad–London Gatwick flight (AI 159), citing the unavailability of an aircraft due to airspace restrictions and precautionary checks. The airline clarified that the cancellation was not caused by any technical issue.
“Flight AI159 from Ahmedabad to Gatwick has been cancelled today due to the unavailability of an aircraft. This was a result of airspace restrictions and additional precautionary checks, which extended the aircraft turnaround time. The cancellation was not due to any technical snag, contrary to some claims,” an Air India spokesperson stated.
“We sincerely regret the inconvenience caused to our passengers due to the cancellation of flight AI170 from London Gatwick to Amritsar on 17 June. Alternative travel arrangements have been made to ensure passengers reach their destination, and hotel accommodations are being provided. Additionally, passengers are being offered full refunds for cancellations or complimentary rescheduling as per their preference,” the airline said in a statement.
Meanwhile, a frustrated passenger told news agency , “I was scheduled to travel to London, but the flight was cancelled without any explanation from the crew regarding the reason or refund process.” However, airport officials confirmed that efforts are underway to re-route the affected passengers.
Flight AI 159, originally scheduled to depart at 1:10 PM, was rescheduled to 3:00 PM. However, by 1:45 PM, Air India confirmed that the service had been cancelled.
According to information available on the Air India website, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner was assigned to operate Flight AI 159.
This development comes just days after the tragic crash of Air India Flight AI 171 — also a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner — which was operating on the same route from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick. The aircraft crashed seconds after take-off, slamming into several buildings near the airport, including a college hostel. The resulting explosion and fireball claimed the lives of 241 out of the 242 people on board.
At least 33 people on the ground also lost their lives in the tragedy.
As a mark of respect for the victims of the June 12 AI-171 crash, Air India has retired the flight number 171.
In the wake of the incident, three other India-bound Boeing 787 Dreamliner flights — operated by British Airways, Lufthansa, and Air India — were forced to return to their departure airports.
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Among them was Air India’s Hong Kong–Delhi flight, AI-315, which turned back just 15 minutes after takeoff. While the airline cited a “technical issue” as the reason for the turnaround, it did not provide further details.
Two other flights — one from Frankfurt to Hyderabad and another from London to Chennai — also experienced technical issues.
In a separate incident early Tuesday, an Air India flight from San Francisco to Mumbai, with a scheduled stop in Kolkata, encountered a technical snag. Passengers were deboarded during the halt at Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Airport. According to news agency PTI, the issue was traced to the aircraft’s left engine.
Meanwhile, the flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder from the crashed aircraft have been recovered. Authorities have begun analyzing the information. The government has formed a high-level committee to investigate the incident and recommend safety measures to prevent such alarming accidents in the future.
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