Air India flight to London aborts takeoff due to technical issue
An Air India flight from Delhi to London was forced to abandon take-off just minutes before it was due to depart on Thursday.
The Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner exited the runway due to a suspected technical issue, according to local reports.
In a statement to PTI, an airline spokesperson said: “Flight AI2017, operating from Delhi to London on July 31, returned to the bay due to a suspected technical issue."
“The cockpit crew decided to discontinue the take-off run following standard operating procedures and brought the aircraft back for precautionary checks.”
Alternative travel arrangements were made for the passengers, with the airline dispatching another aircraft to fulfil the scheduled flight.
Ground staff were also on hand to provide support to passengers.
Another Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, operated by United Airlines, was forced to make an emergency landing after the plane’s turbine stopped working earlier this week.
This year has seen multiple plane-related incidents making headlines worldwide, including the tragic Air India plane crash in June.
Air India has found itself in hot water following the tragedy, with an aviation watchdog finding 51 safety-related faults at the company during its annual audit.
Plane-related incidents in 2025 have included a plane crash in Washington DC which saw 67 die, an aviation disaster in Philadelphia in January, and incidents in Toronto, Alaska, Pennsylvania, and Chicago.
On July 13, a plane crash took place at London’s Southend airport, though no casualties were reported.
The latest crash in Bangladesh saw 19 people lose their lives when an air force training plane crashed into a school campus in capital Dhaka.
There is no sign that air travel is becoming more dangerous, with experts maintaining that air travel is still safer than travel by car.
The National Safety Council in the US said Americans have a one in 93 chance of dying in a motor accident, while deaths on planes are too rare to calculate.
