Indian aviation safety has come under renewed scrutiny after the Civil Aviation Ministry revealed in Parliament that 377 aircraft from six scheduled carriers were flagged for repetitive technical defects between January 2025 and early February 2026.

The disclosures, made in a written reply by Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol in the Lok Sabha, showed that nearly half of the 754 aircraft analysed were found to have recurring issues despite regular maintenance and oversight by the country’s aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).

Among these, IndiGo and the Air India Group recorded the highest number of aircraft with such defects.

The findings have reignited concerns about airline maintenance practices, operational resilience, and regulatory efficiency – especially in a sector that has seen rapid growth in passenger traffic and fleet sizes in recent years.

The government has sought to reassure passengers and lawmakers that most issues identified are non-critical and that strict safety protocols ensure aircraft do not operate unless they are airworthy.

Still, aviation experts, lawmakers and flyers alike are asking whether existing systems are fully equipped to manage the complexities of India’s booming aviation ecosystem.

Recurring Defects: What the Data Shows and What It Means

Analysis shared in Parliament indicates that among the 377 aircraft flagged:

• IndiGo, India’s largest carrier, had 148 aircraft out of 405 analysed show recurring defects.
• The Air India Group – including Air India and Air India Express – had 191 planes out of 267 analysed marked for repetitive issues, amounting to roughly 72% of its audited fleet.
• Other carriers including SpiceJet, Akasa Air and Alliance Air also featured on the list, though with comparatively lower counts.

Officials explained that these “recurring defects” are logged when the same issue whether electrical, mechanical, or operational surfaces multiple times on an aircraft even after corrective action was taken.

These can range from minor cabin issues (like loose tray tables) to technical snags, although the data does not disclose how many of these directly affect flight safety versus cabin comfort.

The DGCA said it conducted extensive surveillance and inspection activities, including 3,890 surveillance inspections, 56 regulatory audits, 492 ramp checks and 84 foreign aircraft inspections, as part of planned oversight in 2025.

Additional unplanned spot checks and night surveillance exercises were also carried out to ensure compliance with operational and safety norms.

Industry insiders note that the sheer size and diversity of the fleets particularly for carriers such as IndiGo and Air India, which operate both Airbus and Boeing aircraft can naturally result in varying maintenance complexities and defect profiles.

Nonetheless, nearly 50% of audited planes showing recurring issues is a statistic that even experienced observers find striking.

Wider Context

This latest development comes amid other tensions in India’s aviation landscape. In late 2025, airlines faced mass cancellations affecting hundreds of thousands of passengers, particularly in December, when schedule disruptions were widely attributed to systems optimisation challenges, regulatory preparedness gaps, software shortcomings and operational control issues especially for IndiGo flights.

Regulatory action, including financial penalties and compliance directives, was imposed as part of corrective measures.

Beyond scheduled inspections, broader safety concerns were amplified by unrelated but serious external incidents. For example, a Boeing 787 Dreamliner operated by Air India was grounded after a pilot reported a possible fuel control switch anomaly, prompting international regulatory scrutiny and a detailed investigation by the UK Civil Aviation Authority.

While no systemic fault was confirmed upon later inspection, the episode heightened attention on maintenance and reporting standards within the Indian airline system.

Parliamentarians and aviation analysts have also highlighted long-standing challenges within the DGCA, including manpower constraints and resource limitations, which in past years have been cited as factors that may inhibit robust oversight at a time of unprecedented expansion in the sector.

While the government has since increased sanctioned technical posts to beef up enforcement capacity, critics say more is needed to match the scale and pace of growth.

Statements From Officials and Airlines

In his written response, MoS Murlidhar Mohol emphasised that flagged defects do not automatically imply unsafe aircraft, pointing out that safety oversight mechanisms including surveillance, audits and corrective enforcement are robust and continuously monitored.

The DGCA’s shift to real-time electronic tracking of inspections and deficiency reports through the eGCA portal was cited as one key step towards sharper enforcement and transparency.

Airlines themselves have responded cautiously to the data. An Air India spokesperson noted that the high number of flagged aircraft in its fleet partly reflects “out of an abundance of caution” inspections that captured a wide range of issues, many of which fall under lower-priority categories (such as cabin interior components) rather than critical systems.

The airline said safety remains its “topmost priority” and that corrective actions are taken promptly as per regulatory requirements.

Representatives for other airlines including IndiGo and SpiceJet – have similarly reiterated their commitment to compliance, but did not publicly dispute the government data or provide detailed breakdowns of the nature of defects.

Aviation industry bodies have also urged contextual reading of the figures, noting that elevated reporting can sometimes indicate better compliance and transparency rather than systemic weakness.

The Logical Indian’s Perspective

At its heart, aviation is a public service and a matter of public safety. India’s skies, once the domain of a handful of carriers, now see millions of journeys each month underlining the transformative growth of air connectivity across the nation.

But with growth comes responsibility: robust oversight, thorough maintenance protocols, and clear communication with passengers are non-negotiable pillars of a safe and trustworthy aviation ecosystem.

The latest disclosures should not be seized as fodder for fear but viewed as an opportunity for collective improvement. Transparent reporting of defects, rigorous regulatory enforcement, and proactive steps by airlines to address root causes demonstrate that the system can learn and adapt.

At the same time, independent scrutiny, meaningful accountability and investment in regulatory capacity will be crucial to ensure that routine defects do not escalate into avoidable hazards.