After Boeing 787 is diverted, Air India looks into software problem

Mumbai: In the latest in a string of technical problems involving the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, a "software glitch" has caused an Air India flight to divert from its course and make an emergency landing in Malaysia.

Praveen Bhatnagar, an Air India spokesman, said Thursday the incident was a "technical problem" and did not involve any safety risk to the passengers; the incident occurred Wednesday, and the flight was carrying 215 passengers and 12 crew members.

Air India called for engineers from Hong Kong to fix the aircraft because there were no Boeing-certified engineers in Kuala Lumpur, he said. The cause of the software problem has not been determined, Bhatnagar said, and the issue will be investigated by the aviation authorities in India.

Air India said it had alerted Boeing and expected the situation to be resolved speedily.

"We have already raised this issue with Boeing, and they are taking the measures needed to ensure that the problem is solved and it does not happen in the future," Bhatnagar said. "Since it is a new machine for them as well, it takes time to adjust to new issues."

Boeing issued a statement saying it was aware of the situation and was "working with Air India to provide support."

Boeing is upgrading the software in Air India's Dreamliners, but the aircraft involved in the emergency landing Wednesday had not been upgraded, Bhatnagar said. The flight was expected to arrive in New Delhi at midnight on Thursday.

After noticing a "software glitch," Air India pilots diverted a Dreamliner that was flying from Melbourne, Australia, to New Delhi and performed an emergency landing in Kuala Lumpur.

"There was an indication in the flight management computers that there was a software glitch, so the pilot decided to land at the nearest airport, which was Kuala Lumpur," said Bhatnagar, adding that the pilot landed the flight manually. "Once you have lost confidence in the machine and on the software, then you cannot take the risk, so the pilot took the controls in his own hands and landed the plane safely."

When Air India began its Boeing 787 fleet two years ago - not long after the aircraft was introduced - it was promoted as part of an effort to turn around the ailing government-owned airline. Air India has been a key customer of the Dreamliner and has ordered 27 of the aircraft. About a dozen of the jets are operating in its fleet, flying to international destinations.

But the Dreamliner, which is made of lightweight carbon composite and has new engines and other technological advances that help cut fuel costs by 20 percent, has been plagued with a series of technical problems.

In January 2013, Dreamliners were grounded worldwide for months following two problems involving its lithium-ion batteries. Last month, that issue was resurrected after Japan Airlines maintenance staff members noticed smoke emitting from the battery of a Dreamliner parked at Narita International Airport, near Tokyo, just before takeoff. It was the first battery cell failure since recertification of the plane last April.

The Air India fleet of Dreamliners has experienced its own problems, with three problems in the past few months.

In October, a fuselage panel fell off the underside of one of the jets as the plane landed in Bangalore. In November, one of the planes developed a cracked windshield while landing in Australia, and last month a Dreamliner returned to its takeoff point in London after a transponder failure caused a communications problem.

Experts contend that the Boeing aircraft is experiencing problems like any plane being introduced to commercial flight.

"The 787 is a new aircraft, and it is facing the initial teething troubles that are part and parcel of any new aircraft program - it is widely expected in that sense," said Kapil Kaul, chief executive in South Asia for the Center for Asia Pacific Aviation. "This is highlighted in the case of the 787 because the worldwide fleet was grounded because of issues with the battery."

He added that it was likely to take a few months to resolve the problems as the airline familiarized itself with the Dreamliner.

"I expect that challenges on an operational level with this aircraft might continue for a few more months before the entire ecosystem in Air India gets familiar with the aircraft," he said.

"One hopes these teething troubles are addressed quickly, coming as they are on the back of FAA's downgrade of the safety regulator in India," said Amber Dubey, the India head of aerospace and defense at the global consulting firm KPMG, referring to an action taken by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration on Jan. 31. Saying that India had an inadequate number of flight operation inspectors, the FAA barred the nation's carriers from increasing flights to the United States.

"The Dreamliners are regarded as one of the most advanced aircraft available today, with over 110 of them flying all over the world," Dubey said. "They were brought in as a game changer for Air India. It is indeed unfortunate to see these incidents. Investigations will reveal whether it's a manufacturing defect or human error or both."