- By Soumyaroop Mukherjee
- Sun, 12 Oct 2025 01:20 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), India’s aviation regulator, has asked Boeing for a detailed report on the sudden deployment of the Ram Air Turbine (RAT) on Air India flight AI-117 at Birmingham earlier this month. The top aviation regulator has also directed the airlines to inspect the RAT on all the affected aircraft, particularly those with replaced power conditioning modules (PCMs).
The DGCA also directed Air India to re-examine the maintenance procedures associated with the “D” Check to confirm that every necessary step concerning the PCM module replacement was accurately carried out. The authority also mentioned plans to conduct a follow-up inspection of the RAT storage system on all Boeing 787 jets that have undergone recent PCM module replacements.
Why Is PCM Check Important?
PCM provides power for other modules that support the operation of multiple aircraft systems. A failure of the PCM can lead to an electrical, hydraulic and twin-engine failure. The directive aims to check any correlation between the newly replaced PCM and the sudden deployment of the RAT.
Boeing Requested For Global Report
The DGCA has also asked Boeing to submit a comprehensive report that highlights the preventive measures which can be implemented on the uncommanded RAT deployment. The company has also asked to cite similar incidents that are happening across the world as per the Fleet Team Digest of Boeing.
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What Happened On AI-117?
On October 4, 2025, Air India flight AI-117, a Boeing 787-8 (registration VT-ANO), experienced an unexpected deployment of the Ram Air Turbine (RAT) during final approach to Birmingham. The deployment occurred at an altitude of approximately 400 feet.
Despite the incident, the pilot noted no irregularities, and the landing proceeded safely and without complications. The incident was brought to the notice of the official, who stated, “Further investigation is in process.” Boeing stated that maintenance actions were underway for the uncommanded RAT deployment, and no discrepancy was observed.
Accordingly, the aircraft was cleared for its return journey and successfully landed in Delhi on October 5.
With inputs from ANI