N Chandrasekaran says one engine on plane was new

The head of the airline said that one of the Air India engines that crashed last week was new, while the other was not due to serve until December.

In an interview with an Indian news channel, N Chandrasekaran said that the plane engines had a “clean” history.

“The right engine was a new engine that was placed in March 2025. The left engine was last served in 2023, and she resorted to the following maintenance examination in December 2025.”

At least 270 people, most of them passengers, were killed last Thursday when AI171, Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, was killed, after less than one minute from Ahmed Abad Airport in western India.

Investigators are now going out through the debris, decomposing registered airline data and a cockpit sound – from the plane Black boxes found – To dismantle the last moments of the trip and Determine the cause of the accident.

“There is a lot of speculation and a lot of theories. But the fact that I know so far is this particular plane, this specified tail, AI171, has a clean history,” said Mr. Chandrasikran.

“All experts told me that the black and registered box will definitely tell the story. So, we just have to wait for it,” he added.

Keshor Cinta, a former investigator of the BBC aircraft investigation, has not necessarily associated with its age-especially in the case of Genx-1B engines used in Boeing 787-8.

“The engine era has no effect on the engine health, especially for Genx-1B engines,” said Mr. Cinta. In other words, just because the engine is new, it does not necessarily mean that it is healthy, or vice versa.

Unlike the old models, the Genx-1B engines, made by Geospace, do not follow a fixed or maintenance repair schedule. Instead, it is equipped with a system called the Complex Digital Engine Control or Fadec constantly monitors engine health and engine performance. The decision of the service or the replacement of the engine depends on this data and material inspection.

However, Mr. Chinta indicated that some of the engine components, known as Life Limited Parts (LLPS), still have a fixed life usually between 15,000 and 20,000 rounds.

“Every start and switching of the engine is one cycle,” he explained.

While the investigation continues, Air India announced a 15 % reduction in its international operations on a wide body plane until mid -July, as it wrestles with the repercussions of the accident.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, the airline said that the decision was driven by “double conditions” – including enhanced safety tests, and increased caution by the crew, land and tensions in the Middle East.

Separately, the airline said that the inspections have been completed on 26 from 33 plane from the Boeing 787-8 and 787-9, all of which were “cleared for service.”

An additional safety organizer in India requested additional safety checks on the Boeing 787 flying fleet in India after the deadly collapse as a “protective scale”.

Air India said that the remaining plane is expected to be examined in the coming days, adding that the Boeing 777 airline fleet will also “perform reinforced safety checks.”

She said: “The sanctities are a painful procedure, but it is necessary after a devastating event that we are still working through and an extraordinary mixture of external events.”

Meanwhile, some experts say that the accident will be likely Impact on India, where it tries to transform From a comprehensive, turbulent company owned by the state to a private royal company.

Tata Sons, a group of major brands such as Tetley Tea and Jaguar Land Rover, airline – a former national carrier of India – brought from the Indian government in 2022.

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