Singapore Airlines Joins Forces With Air India To Overhaul Aircraft Maintenance And Improve Safety After 787 Crash

Thursday, August 7, 2025

Author: TTW News Desk

In June 2025, Air India formation AI 171 crashed, resulting successful nan tragic nonaccomplishment of 241 lives. In response, nan hose is making important changes to its craft attraction strategy. To boost fleet reliability and operational safety, Air India is moving pinch its cardinal number stakeholder, Singapore Airlines (SQ), which holds a 25.1% liking successful nan airline. This business is simply a caller shape successful their relationship, pinch SQ providing basal method support to thief Air India fortify its soul Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) capabilities.

This strategy displacement follows a thorough audit by nan Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), which identified respective information concerns successful Air India’s operations. The determination to bring cardinal MRO services in-house, which were antecedently outsourced to state-owned AI Engineering Services Ltd. (AIESL), shows Air India’s committedness to amended oversight and gathering world information and reliability standards.

The Aftermath of nan AI 171 Crash: A Turning Point for Air India

The clang of formation AI 171 successful Ahmedabad was a wake-up telephone for Air India, nan aviation community, and nan Indian government. While investigators are still looking into nan nonstop cause, nan incident revealed superior gaps successful Air India’s operational oversight and information protocols wrong its existing MRO framework. The DGCA’s audit uncovered 93 safety-related issues, nan highest number among Indian carriers, contrasting sharply pinch nan little figures recovered astatine competitors for illustration IndiGo and SpiceJet.

The audit highlighted ongoing concerns astir AIESL’s work quality, which was responsible for pre-flight checks, insignificant repairs, and regular craft inspections. Poor attraction procedures, deficiency of craft hygiene, and oversight lapses led Air India to return swift actions to amended its attraction systems.

The Role of Singapore Airlines successful Air India’s Maintenance Overhaul

The business pinch Singapore Airlines, which maintains a 25.1% liking successful Air India, has strengthened nan collaboration betwixt nan 2 airlines. Known for its exceptional attraction practices, Singapore Airlines will connection method support arsenic Air India shifts toward a much self-sufficient MRO model. This collaboration marks a reversal of roles from earlier times erstwhile Air India supported Singapore Airlines successful its first years of operation.

SIA Engineering Company, a subsidiary of Singapore Airlines that specializes successful craft maintenance, is starring this partnership. The institution will guideline to heighten Air India’s soul MRO capabilities, which will see in-house pre-flight checks, insignificant repairs, and regular inspections. An SIA spokesperson confirmed their commitment, stating they will support Air India’s modulation and guarantee businesslike knowledge transportation while maintaining precocious standards.

A Phased Transition to In-House MRO Services

Air India is gradually transitioning its MRO operations in-house arsenic portion of its semipermanent restructuring scheme to meet nan demands of its increasing fleet. A sizeable information of these services is presently outsourced to AIESL, which has handled attraction and repairs since earlier nan hose was privatized. However, to support its eager maturation and amended meet world information standards, Air India is bringing these operations nether its management.

This phased modulation aligns pinch nan Tata Group’s broader restructuring of Air India aft acquiring nan hose successful 2022. Under Tata Group leadership, Air India plans to modernize its operations and amended fleet reliability, which is important for early fleet description .

Air India’s Growing Fleet and Expansion Plans

Air India’s eager maturation plans are captious for its occurrence successful nan world aviation industry. The hose operates a fleet of 191 aircraft, pinch an further 570 planes connected order, including galore widebody jets. This maturation is portion of Air India’s strategy to grow routes some domestically and internationally.

To support operational ratio and meet world information standards, Air India must put heavy successful its MRO structure. Currently, India’s MRO manufacture is not ample capable to support Air India’s description plans. Therefore, nan hose is focused connected building beardown in-house capabilities to trim reliance connected outer vendors arsenic its fleet grows.

The Broader Impact connected India’s Aviation Industry

Air India’s determination to amended its attraction operations has wider effects connected nan Indian aviation industry. The clang and nan consequent information audit person highlighted nan request for improvements successful aviation information and regulations nationwide. Although nan hose manufacture faces challenges, Air India’s proactive measures to reside these issues and collaborate pinch world partners for illustration Singapore Airlines show its committedness to information and operational quality.

For Singapore Airlines, moving pinch Air India comes during a challenging financial period. The hose reported a 59% driblet successful quarterly profits by nan extremity of June 30, 2025, mostly owed to nan financial effect of this partnership. Still, nan strategical assistance being provided to Air India is expected to support its semipermanent maturation and reconstruct operational stability.

Air India’s Road to Recovery and nan Future of Aviation successful India

Despite nan challenges faced by Air India and nan Indian aviation sector, location is dream for nan future. The airline’s initiatives to overhaul its attraction operations and heighten soul capabilities are important for its semipermanent success. With Singapore Airlines’ support and a beardown attraction connected fleet reliability and safety, Air India is well-positioned to amended its operations and compete internationally.

As Air India continues to grow its fleet and put successful MRO capabilities, it is mounting a higher modular for operational excellence successful India’s aviation sector. The early of Indian aviation is promising arsenic nan country’s flagship bearer useful to regain rider trust, heighten information standards, and support manufacture growth.

Conclusion: A New Era for Air India’s Maintenance Strategy

The clang of formation AI 171 has triggered important changes wrong Air India. The airline’s prime to bring its MRO services in-house, pinch thief from Singapore Airlines, marks a awesome measurement toward greater operational independence. While challenges remain, nan business pinch Singapore Airlines and Air India’s attraction connected expanding its fleet and improving information positions nan hose for a successful future. With ongoing investments successful attraction and safety, Air India intends to reconstruct its estimation and erstwhile again go a leader successful world aviation.

(Source: Air India, Singapore Airlines, Tata Group, DGCA, SIA Engineering Company, Directorate General of Civil Aviation, Air India restructuring, MRO services)