India’s Ministry of Civil Aviation has summoned Air India’s outgoing chief executive, Campbell Wilson, following a serious mid-air incident on flight AI2379 from Phuket to Delhi, in which the Airbus A320neo lost approximately 300 feet of altitude during cruise on August 4. The summons marks a significant escalation in regulatory pressure on the airline, coming as investigators simultaneously examine a technical fault on the aircraft and a pilot drug screening that reportedly returned an initial positive result for a psychoactive substance.
The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau has classified the event as a serious incident, a designation that triggers a formal inquiry under Annexure 13 of the International Civil Aviation Organization’s framework for accident and incident investigation. The scale of the response, involving the aviation ministry, the national regulator, and international technical experts, underscores how seriously the episode is being treated within India’s civil aviation establishment.
A sudden loss of altitude over Odisha
Flight AI2379, operated by an Airbus A320neo registered VT-EXO, was cruising over the eastern state of Odisha when it experienced what Air India initially described as a momentary altitude variation. According to the Civil Aviation Ministry, the aircraft lost close to 300 feet before the crew regained control and the flight continued on to Delhi, where it landed without further incident.
The aircraft was carrying 137 passengers, including three infants, along with eight crew members comprising two pilots and six cabin crew. Ministry officials have said the aircraft stabilised relatively quickly after the drop, though the abruptness of the movement was sufficient to cause injuries throughout the cabin and prompt an emergency response on the ground in Delhi.
Passengers recount a frightening descent
At least 17 people, a combination of passengers and crew, required medical attention after the aircraft landed. Ministry figures put the toll at 13 injured passengers and four injured crew members. Ambulances were positioned at the Delhi airport terminal in anticipation of the aircraft’s arrival, and several passengers were wheeled off the aircraft, with others seen wearing head bandages as they were taken for further evaluation.
One family lodged a formal complaint with the Directorate General of Civil Aviation through the AirSewa portal, detailing injuries that included a suspected spinal injury and a fractured rib sustained during the sudden drop. Other passengers described a chaotic and disorienting few seconds in which unsecured items and standing crew members were thrown off balance, consistent with an unexpected and forceful loss of altitude rather than routine turbulence.
Pilot screening raises serious questions
The incident took on an additional dimension when it emerged that the pilot in command had returned an initial screening result indicating the presence of a psychoactive substance. Multiple media outlets, citing unnamed sources, reported that the substance in question was marijuana, although neither Air India nor the Directorate General of Civil Aviation has officially confirmed this detail.
The Civil Aviation Ministry has said the pilot’s initial result required further laboratory analysis and that confirmatory testing has since been carried out, with the outcome still pending. Under existing aviation regulations, a confirmed positive result can carry significant consequences for a pilot’s licence, including extended suspension or, in the case of repeat violations, outright cancellation.
Air India has been notably measured in its public response, declining to comment on the substance of the findings while confirming that testing had taken place. In a statement, the airline said, “We are aware that a post-flight screening test was conducted on the pilots in accordance with applicable protocols. However, the results of the test have not been shared with Air India, and we are therefore not in a position to comment on any findings.” The airline added, “Air India undertakes regular drug testing of crew members in compliance with civil aviation regulations, independent of any specific flight or operational incident. We will continue to cooperate with the relevant authorities as required.”
The Airline Pilots Association of India, representing the profession, has cautioned against treating the preliminary result as conclusive. The body noted that certain over the counter medicines are known to produce a non negative reading during psychoactive substance screening, and argued that confirmatory testing must be allowed to run its course before any firm conclusions are drawn about the pilot’s conduct.
Government summons Air India’s chief executive
Campbell Wilson, who is due to step down as Air India’s chief executive, was called to the Ministry of Civil Aviation’s headquarters in New Delhi, where he met with senior ministry officials and representatives of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation. The meeting reflects mounting frustration within government circles over the airline’s handling of recent safety episodes and its communication with regulators.
Speaking briefly to reporters as he left the meeting, Wilson offered little detail on the substance of the discussion, saying, “We were just giving an update on the status of the investigation. It is up to him, the aviation minister, to give an update.” His comments suggested that the government intends to control the narrative around the investigation’s findings rather than leave the airline to characterise them independently.
The summons is not an isolated episode of regulatory friction for Wilson. Earlier this year, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation issued a show cause notice to him personally over the airline’s delayed reporting of an unrelated cockpit access breach on a different route, in which a pilot allowed an unauthorised individual into the cockpit. Taken together, the two episodes point to a regulator increasingly willing to hold the airline’s senior leadership directly accountable for lapses in safety governance.
Airbus and French investigators join the probe
To strengthen the technical dimension of the inquiry, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau has enlisted specialists from Airbus and from France’s Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety, the agency responsible for investigating civil aviation accidents involving French-manufactured aircraft. Their involvement points to the seriousness with which investigators are treating the possibility of an underlying technical fault, rather than attributing the altitude loss solely to atmospheric turbulence.
Investigators are examining the aircraft’s flight data and cockpit voice recorders, along with maintenance records, amid separate reports that the same aircraft had experienced other technical irregularities, including references to hydraulic system anomalies and an autopilot related fault, in the period preceding the turbulence event. Establishing whether these issues played any role in the sudden altitude loss is expected to be a central focus of the investigation in the weeks ahead.
The inquiry arrives at a sensitive moment for Air India, which has spent recent years attempting to modernise its fleet and rebuild its safety reputation under Tata Group ownership following a period of prolonged financial and operational difficulty. The scrutiny now facing the airline, coinciding with a change in its top leadership, will test how effectively its safety and regulatory reporting systems function under pressure.
