"Extremely Pleased": Akasa Air On Boeing 737 Max In Fleet

Akasa Air, one of India's newest airlines, has said it is "extremely pleased" with the performance of the Boeing 737 Max aircraft but added that "no amount of focus on safety is enough".

In an exclusive interview to NDTV, Akasa Air CEO Vinay Dube said, "For the moment, we are extremely pleased with the performance of the aircraft. On the other hand, we will say that no amount of focus on safety is too much. I will say that some of the incidents have happened with variants of Max that we don't have and with modifications of variants that we don't have. So there are certainly mitigating circumstances in those that we are not exposed to at all. So, for us in Akasa, unequivocally, we feel very safe in this particular aircraft and we look forward to this amazing growth that's ahead of us."

The Boeing 737 Max has had a chequered flight since its first take-off in 2016. The fastest-selling plane in history was grounded worldwide in 2019 after crashes in Indonesia and Jakarta left 356 people dead. The aircraft was back in service early in 2021.

But trouble began last year when the US' Federation Aviation Administration said it is closely monitoring targeted inspections of Boeing 737 MAX planes to look for a possible loose bolt in the rudder control system.

The plane manufacturer said the issue identified on a particular aircraft had been fixed and asked airlines to conduct an inspection of their Boeing 737 Max fleet.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation, the country's aviation regulation, had then asked all airline operators in the country to conduct a one-time inspection of this aircraft in their fleet.

Asked if the overall concern about quality of planes is a concern for Akasa, Mr Dube reiterated that "no amount of focus on safety is too much". "The second thing to keep in mind is that the FAA (US' Federal Aviation Administration) continues to provide certifications of air-worthiness. So if they actually thought that there were concerns that prevented this aircraft from being air-worthy as we fly it today, it would have showed up. For the moment, we would want ourselves and everyone in the aviation ecosystem to continue and redouble their efforts in safety. But we have no concerns at this point," he said.

Founded in 2022, Akasa Air now operates on select routes within India and has a fleet of about 24 planes. The airline is set to start international flights later this month, With Doha as their first destination. The airline has said they have placed an order for 226 Boeing 737 Max aircraft and have adequate pilots to meet the inflow of planes.