By Ameya Joshi
The tragic Air India crash last month has sent shockwaves across the nation and the global aviation community. The loss of lives, damage to property, and the blow to passenger confidence are a stark reminder of how vulnerable even our most trusted systems can be. Yet, as history has shown us time and again, it is often in the darkest moments that the seeds of meaningful change are sown. In the wake of this adversity lies an opportunity—perhaps a once-in-a-generation chance—to bring about transformative reforms in Air India and, more broadly, in India’s aviation regulatory landscape.
The Immediate Aftermath: Underwhelming Response
As investigations unfold and the preliminary report is made public, glaring issues emerge from both the government’s and the airline’s perspectives. The government took time to secure the wreckage, a crucial piece of the investigation, along with announcing the retrieval of the black boxes. The all-important Cockpit Voice Recorder and Data Flight Recorder had not been flown to New Delhi, where the AAIB lab is located, for a good week. There was limited information from the government, with only one press conference to address the issues.
Air India, on the other hand, initially shifted a team to Ahmedabad to work with families for DNA testing, among other tasks. However, its CEO who was on the flight to Paris when the accident happened and the aircraft turned around to get him back to Delhi, has been criticised for a plagiarised speech in the immediate aftermath.
Air India, as a legacy carrier recently restructured and privatized under the Tata Group’s stewardship, is expected to operate at international standards of safety, service, and operational excellence. Yet, this incident threatens to undermine those efforts, highlighting gaps that remain unaddressed. However, rather than viewing this tragedy purely through a lens of failure, it is essential to see it as a powerful catalyst for change.
Learning from the Past: Aviation Reforms Post-Crisis
Globally, many of aviation’s most important safety regulations and technologies emerged from tragedy. The Tenerife airport disaster in 1977 led to reforms in cockpit communication, specifically the introduction of Crew Resource Management (CRM). The 2009 Air France Flight 447 crash over the Atlantic prompted a reevaluation of pilot training on high-altitude stall recovery. Each of these disasters spurred change that has since saved countless lives.
India, too, must treat this tragedy as a turning point. The crash should not merely result in a checklist of short-term fixes or punitive actions—it should lead to a comprehensive overhaul of how safety, compliance, communication, and accountability are managed in Indian aviation.
Air India, under the Tata Group, has made significant strides in revamping its image, upgrading its fleet, and improving customer experience. However, safety is not a cosmetic feature—it is an embedded part of the culture. For decades, the airline carried the burden of legacy systems, bureaucratic inertia, and political interference. Although privatization was a critical first step, changing the DNA of an airline takes more than a change in ownership.
This tragedy demands that Air India deeply re-evaluate its internal safety culture. Questions must be asked: Are flight crews adequately trained in real-time crisis scenarios? Are ground operations synchronized with cockpit alerts? Is there a robust mechanism for internal reporting of concerns without fear of retaliation?
Air India has the opportunity to lead by example by investing in advanced flight simulation training, fostering a transparent “just culture” environment, and auditing every aspect of operations, from maintenance to crew rosters. This also includes embracing predictive analytics and AI to identify operational anomalies before they escalate into disasters.
Reforming the DGCA: Strengthening India’s Aviation Regulator
This tragedy presents a compelling case for transforming the DGCA into a modern, independent, and autonomous body, comparable to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in the United States or the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). India must depoliticize the regulator, provide it with greater financial and legal autonomy, and staff it with domain experts rather than career bureaucrats unfamiliar with aviation’s operational intricacies. Despite being the apex regulator, DGCA has long been criticized for being under-resourced, reactive rather than proactive, and often slow to implement international best practices. While individual officers within DGCA are competent and committed, the institution itself suffers from structural limitations. The government has to step in and take this as an opportunity to revamp the organisation.
Changing the Narrative: From Crisis to Confidence
One of the immediate consequences of the crash has been a loss of passenger confidence. Families of victims and survivors often feel sidelined in the chaos that follows. India needs to adopt a more transparent passenger rights framework that mandates the provision of timely information, medical support, compensation protocols, and psychological assistance.
More importantly, airlines must standardize their crisis communication protocols. In today’s age of real-time news and social media, any delay or opacity in sharing information worsens the situation. Air India can lead the way in building a responsive, empathetic, and transparent crisis management team that becomes a case study for the region.
As grim as the present moment is, it holds a silver lining. The crash has galvanized public interest, attracted media scrutiny, and brought aviation safety to the forefront of the national agenda. There is no better time for reform. But this cannot be Air India’s burden alone. The government must play an enabling role—providing policy clarity, institutional support, and financial incentives to boost aviation infrastructure and regulatory strength. Parliament must also take an interest, holding public hearings, pushing safety-related legislation, and ensuring accountability.
“In adversity lies opportunity” is more than a saying—it is a strategy. India must not let this tragedy pass as another item in aviation history. Instead, it should be the beginning of a radical shift in how safety, regulation, communication, and transparency are treated in Indian aviation.
Ameya Joshi is an aviation analyst and columnist who runs the analysis website Network Thoughts.
