India on Monday ordered its airlines to examine fuel switches on several Boeing models, while South Korea said it would order a similar measure as scrutiny intensified of fuel switch locks at the centre of an investigation into a deadly Air India crash.
The moves by India and South Korea came despite the plane maker and the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) telling airlines and regulators in recent days the fuel switch locks on Boeing jets are safe.
The locks have come under scrutiny after last month's crash of an Air India jet killed 260 people. A preliminary report found the switches had almost simultaneously flipped from run position to cutoff shortly after takeoff.
The report noted a 2018 advisory from the FAA, which recommended, but did not mandate, operators of several Boeing models including the 787 to inspect the locking feature of fuel cutoff switches to ensure they could not be moved accidentally.
India's directorate general of civil aviation said it had issued an order to investigate locks on several Boeing models including 787s and 737s after several Indian and international airlines began making their own inspections of fuel switches.
The regulator oversees the world's third-largest and fastest-growing aviation market and its move raises the stakes for Boeing, whose aircraft are used by three of the country's four largest airlines.
A spokesperson for the South Korean transport ministry said checks there were in line with the 2018 advisory from the FAA, but did not give a timeline.
Boeing referred Reuters' questions to the FAA, which was not immediately available to comment outside regular hours. The company's shares were up 1.4% in US premarket trading.
Some other global airlines were weighing their own inspections or had begun checks.
Japan's JAL said safety was its top priority, adding, "We are closely monitoring the investigation into the incident and will implement any necessary inspections based on its findings."
Over the weekend, Air India Group started checking the locking mechanism on the fuel switches of its Boeing 787 and 737 fleets and discovered no problems yet, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters.
About half the group's 787s have been inspected and nearly all its 737s, the source added, speaking on condition of anonymity. Inspections were set to be completed in the next day or two.
On Sunday, citing a document and sources, Reuters reported the plane maker and the FAA had privately issued notifications to airlines and regulators that the fuel switch locks on Boeing planes were safe and checks were not required.
The Air India crash preliminary report said the airline had not carried out the FAA's suggested inspections as the FAA's 2018 advisory was not a mandate.
It also said maintenance records showed the throttle control module, which includes the fuel switches, was replaced in 2019 and 2023 on the plane involved in the crash.
In an internal memo on Monday, Air India CEO Campbell Wilson said the investigation into the crash was far from over and it was unwise to jump to premature conclusions after the release of the preliminary report.
Reuters
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