Checks on Boeing B737-8 Max aircraft performed satisfactorily, says DGCA

New Delhi [India], January 8 : Directorate General of Civil Aviation said on Monday that checks on over-wing emergency exits of Boeing B737-8 Max aircraft have been satisfactorily performed by all aircraft operators.
On Saturday, the regulator had ordered airlines to conduct a one-time inspection of all the Boeing 737-8 aircraft in their fleet after an Alaska Airlines flight made an emergency landing as one of its doors blew open mid-air on Friday.
A senior DGCA official said that as a precautionary measure, DGCA on January 6 directed all Indian operators with Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft to check the operation and proper closing of all over-wing emergency exits within 24 hours.
"These checks have been satisfactorily performed on the operational fleet of Boeing B737-8 Max aircraft by Air India Express (4), Spicejet (8) and Akasa (20). Akasa Air fleet includes one B737-8200 aircraft, which has a mid-cabin door on which the operational check has also been completed satisfactorily," the official said.
Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft was involved in an incident on January 5, 2024, of an in-flight departure of a mid-cabin door plug, which resulted in rapid decompression of the aircraft.
While India doesn't have B737-9 Max aircraft in its fleet, currently, there are 43 B737 MAX planes in the fleet of various airlines in India.
"We have conducted a comprehensive examination of our Boeing 737 MAX fleet, as per the directives of the DGCA. No adverse findings were identified during this inspection. Our flight operations remained unaffected and continued to operate as usual. It is important to note that SpiceJet does not operate the B737-9 variant of the MAX," a SpiceJet spokesperson said.
On Saturday, the DGCA said that, pursuant to the Alaska Airlines incident involving Boeing 737-9 Max aircraft, there have been no inputs or guidance from Boeing so far. None of the Indian air operators have a Boeing 737-9 Max as part of their fleet yet.
However, as an abundant precautionary measure, DGCA has directed all the Indian air operators to carry out a one-time inspection of the emergency exits immediately on all Boeing 737-8 Max aircraft currently operating as part of their fleet.
"Following the incident involving an Alaska Airlines flight on January 5, 2024, in the USA and the subsequent guideline by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, Akasa Air has completed a thorough inspection of its entire fleet of in-service Boeing 737 Max aircraft," an Akasa Air spokesperson said.
"We can confirm that there are no adverse findings. We can also confirm that there was no disruption to our operations during this time. Akasa Air does not have any Boeing 737 Max-9 aircraft in its fleet, the aircraft on which the incident occurred. For us at Akasa Air, safety is of the utmost importance, and we pride ourselves in pursuing the highest global standards of safety," the spokesperson added.