India's civil aviation sector is grappling with a wave of flight-related incidents this week, including a major schedule disruption for Air India and two alarming episodes involving IndiGo flights. So far, on Tuesday, Air India has cancelled its flights between Ahmedabad and London, London and Amritsar, Delhi and Dubai, Bengaluru and London and Mumbai and San Francisco.
Air India cancelled its Ahmedabad-to-London service (AI-159) citing 'operational issues', just days after its predecessor flight AI-171 crashed minutes after take-off on 12 June 2025, killing 241 out of 242 people on board.
The cancelled service was due to depart at 3pm from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport to London Gatwick. The airport authority confirmed the cancellation, saying, “We have been informed that the flight has been cancelled due to operational issues. The original flight AI-171 resumed operations from Monday under the new code AI-159.”
The airline dismissed media reports attributing the cancellation to technical faults. Passengers affected by these cancellations are being offered full refunds, hotel accommodations, and complimentary rescheduling options. Air India expressed regret over the inconvenience caused and assured swift assistance.
No further details were provided about the operational issues. However, the cancellation follows close on the heels of one of India’s deadliest aviation disasters in recent years, casting a long shadow over the carrier’s recovery and safety overhaul.
Rescue and identification efforts are still underway at the crash site in Ahmedabad. According to Gujarat's minister of state for home, Harsh Sanghavi, 144 DNA samples have been successfully matched as of Tuesday noon. A joint team from the state forensic science laboratory and the national forensic sciences university continues round-the-clock efforts to aid grieving families in identifying remains.
More than 300 firefighters, supported by 60 fire vehicles and 20 water bowsers from Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar, Vadodara, ONGC and other agencies, are still clearing debris and smouldering wreckage. Systematic searches are being carried out by NDRF (national disaster responce force) teams, Indian Army units, CRPF (central reserve police force) personnel, and disaster management forces from the CISF (central industrial security force), BSF (border security force), and Western Railway.
Following AI159's cancellation, flight AI170 from London Gatwick to Amritsar, scheduled for Tuesday, was also cancelled. The airline says it is actively managing passenger rebooking amid ongoing challenges in operations.
Air India also cancelled its Paris-bound AI143 flight after pre-flight checks identified an issue. "Flight AI143 from Delhi to Paris on 17 June 2025 has been cancelled. The mandatory pre-flight checks identified an issue which is presently being addressed. However, in view of the flight coming under the restrictions on night operations at Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG) airport, the said flight has been cancelled," a spokesperson from Air India told
Times of India.
In a separate incident on Tuesday, an IndiGo flight en route from Kochi to Delhi made an emergency landing in Nagpur after a bomb threat was received via email. The threat, which specifically mentioned flight number 6E2706, prompted immediate action from airport authorities.
The aircraft, which had earlier flown in from Muscat and departed Kochi at 9:31am with 157 passengers and six crew members, was diverted mid-air. Upon landing safely in Nagpur, all passengers were deplaned and a full-scale security check began.
Officials from the bomb threat assessment committee (BTAC) at Cochin international airport classified the threat as 'specific'. Security agencies are conducting a detailed inspection of the aircraft and its cargo. The airline confirmed that the flight will resume its journey once cleared by the security teams.
This incident follows a spate of aviation security alerts in recent days, including a bomb threat on a Lufthansa flight to Hyderabad, which was forced to return to Frankfurt, and a technical snag on an Air India flight from San Francisco to Mumbai.
Meanwhile, on Monday, an IndiGo flight from North Goa to Lucknow (6E 6811) encountered mid-air turbulence caused by active monsoon conditions in western India. The flight landed safely in Lucknow, the airline confirmed.
“IndiGo flight 6E 6811 from North Goa to Lucknow on 16 June experienced turbulence momentarily due to prevailing active monsoon weather conditions,” the airline said. No injuries were reported and the crew managed the situation according to standard protocols.
The string of events — including the deadly crash of AI-171, bomb threats, mid-air turbulence, and operational disruptions — has raised serious questions about passenger safety, infrastructure resilience and crisis preparedness in India’s aviation sector.
While aviation authorities have so far responded with swift emergency measures, public trust remains fragile, particularly in the wake of the Air India crash. As investigations and security drills continue, airlines as well as regulatory bodies face growing pressure to ensure robust safety checks, improved communication and transparent reporting to restore confidence in the skies.
