In June of this year, we saw an Air India Boeing 787-8 crash, killing all but one person onboard. This was the most fatal aviation accident in around a decade, and to this day, there’s still a lot of mystery surrounding what happened.
Well, a couple of days ago we saw an incident involving another Air India Dreamliner, which has an eery similarity to the previous incident, as reported by The Aviation Herald. Pilots are even calling on the aircraft type to be grounded, pending inspections. Is what happened a coincidence, or could the two incidents be linked?
In this post:
Air India Boeing 787 RAT inexplicably deploys on approach
This incident happened on Saturday, October 4, 2025, and involves Air India flight AI117, operating from Amritsar (ATQ) to Birmingham (BHX). The flight was operated by a 12-year-old Boeing 787-8 with the registration code VT-ANO, the same type of aircraft involved in June’s fatal accident.
The 10hr23min flight was routine, except for the landing. While the plane was on final approach to Birmingham’s runway 33, the ram air turbine (RAT) deployed. The RAT is a small propellor that deploys underneath the fuselage, to provide emergency electrical power when aircraft power is lost.
As many may remember, we saw the RAT deploy on the Air India Dreamliner during June’s fatal crash, given that the plane had lost all power. Video footage showing the RAT being deployed was one of our first clues into what might have happened.
In this case, though, the plane’s power was working just fine, and the aircraft still landed without incident. Ordinarily you’d assume the deployment of the RAT would be a sign of an engine failure, but neither of the aircraft’s engines were having any trouble. The return flight of this plane ended up being canceled, but the plane reentered service the following day, operating a flight from Birmingham to Delhi (DEL).
Below you can see video footage of the incident.
Pilots union raises concerns about Boeing 787 safety
It’s hard to know what exactly to make of this incident. Part of the issue is that we still don’t actually know what happened with the fatal June crash of an Air India Boeing 787. Investigators suggested that one of the pilots cut the power to the aircraft, but other parties (including many pilots) suggest that wasn’t the case, and there must have been some other failure.
A RAT just randomly deploying on short final is strange, especially with everything else seemingly functioning properly. Perhaps this wouldn’t be massively alarming if it weren’t for the unresolved June incident on the same plane type.
In light of that, the Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP) has requested that the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) investigate the electrical systems of all Boeing 787s in the country, calling on the planes to be grounded in anticipation of that being completed.
The belief is that the plane’s computer system may have recorded a fault in the Bus Power Control Unit (BPCU), which may have caused the RAT to deploy. Per the letter:
“It is pertinent to note that incident is another pointer towards the Air India crash of B-787 aircraft. Thus, in the interest of air safety FIP insists that DGCA must thoroughly check and investigate the electrical system of B-787 aircraft in the country.”
So yeah, given that the RAT deployed in both of these situations, it’s certainly worth looking into. However, I’m not sure there’s a strong reason to believe the two are necessarily linked.
In the case of the fatal crash, the RAT deployed correctly, as it should, because both engines were shut down. In this case, the RAT was shut down despite the two engines operating correctly, and it’s not like the RAT being deployed somehow causes the engines to shut down, or for fuel to be cut off.
In other words, it would appear that the RAT malfunctioned this time around, while it worked exactly as it was supposed to last time. That’s not to say the two aren’t related, especially given that both incidents involve Air India 787-8s, but…
Bottom line
An Air India Boeing 787’s ram air turbine (RAT) deployed shortly before landing in Birmingham. This is only supposed to deploy if a plane loses power, but in this case, the plane’s power was working just fine. One might not necessarily view this as a huge deal, except for the fact that the same type of plane crashed in June, with the RAT also deploying (though due to a lack of power).
The union representing pilots is calling on the systems of these planes to be inspected, given the common theme of RAT deployment.
What do you make of this Air India RAT situation?
Air India maintenance crews always swap malfunctioned parts to another plane to pass the inspection. That malfunctioned part will stay in its fleet and never get replaced until someone caught them doing this.
Penile
"there’s still a lot of mystery surrounding what happened."
Not really. Whether the truth is ever told is another story.
If we were seeing inexplicable turbine deployments on 787s from multiple carriers, it would make sense that it’s an aircraft issue. Seeing it a couple of times on the same carrier says there might be an issue with that carrier’s pilot training and/or crew resource management.
There was a LATAM 787 that had a RAT deploy. That said, there have been instances of A320s from several carriers having RATs deploy too.
Racist Mfer.
I hate to say it but this demand from the union is an example of the lengths humans go to deny horrible truths
If several instances of RATs deploying is grounds for grounding the 787 in the eyes of Indian pilots, then they must also call for the grounding of A320s since those have also had their share of RATs being deployed while the planes were in service
Not related, but this is wild in NZ
https://people.com/man-arrested-excessively-kissing-partner-during-flight-receives-sentence-11824668
Why don't you email these things to Ben directly instead of spamming the comments with irrelevance?
@PENILE
Because Alonzo is just being....Alonzo.
Oh yeah John I forgot about that.
So why only Air India and no other airlines exhibiting this? Could it be that they received a bad batch of planes or something added for Air India.
The embedded video shows an ANA aircraft landing with the RAT deployed, even though the aircraft is obviously under power and pilot control.
That’s a test flight and the RAT was intentionally deployed to test the RAT
Is The Boeing Airplane Company able to build a quality aircraft in the first quarter of the 21st Century ? Asking for a friend....
This is an airline that struggles to keep their IFE screens work on their newest planes, so I'm not sure if the Boeing quality control is something to be questioned for this matter (while it is questionable otherwise).
When any plane with a RAT is on the ground or in a hangar, general practice is to avoid standing near where the RAT would swing out, because under some circumstances, it could potentially deploy for little to no reason at all.
Wow clearly you can hear both the sound of the turbines and the RAT.
Do not fly Air India - this is what my Indian colleagues tell me. Realistically I am not sure that we (westerners) need to fly to India at all. Lucrative business opportunities are not present - that's the entire reason I have Indian colleagues, they've moved to the US and do business here. Air quality and food hygiene are both poor. There is a sexist rape culture.
What a horrible generalization.
Okay, harry12345, my apologies, let me try again. The air quality in India is fantastic and no sensitive or asthmatic persons will have any trouble there. Food hygiene adheres to the strictest of international standards and if you experience any gastrointestinal symptoms they must have been a preexisting condition. The country is incredibly safe and hospitable toward solo women travelers who are at no risk of sexual violence.
@Penile (PENILE???), your sarcasm does not hide your pathetic stereotyping and overt racism. Sad. You must have read something by Winston Churchill recently.
Also, for the edification of readers, the term "penile" refers to anything related to the penis, which is the male reproductive organ responsible for sexual intercourse and urination. It consists of three main parts: the root, shaft, and glans, and is made up of erectile tissue that allows for erection (Wikipedia).
...@Penile (PENILE???), your sarcasm does not hide your pathetic stereotyping and overt racism. Sad. You must have read something by Winston Churchill recently.
Also, for the edification of readers, the term "penile" refers to anything related to the penis, which is the male reproductive organ responsible for sexual intercourse and urination. It consists of three main parts: the root, shaft, and glans, and is made up of erectile tissue that allows for erection (Wikipedia).
You have issues, bro.
ooh! way too much information!
Hey Penile,
I think you were right in calling out the food hygiene standards and air pollution.
However, you messed up by saying that there is a culture of rape.
Yes, India can be a difficult country for solo female travelers but that doesn’t make rape to be the default culture. There are many women who live in India and don’t face these issues even though their lives might not be perfect. Its like saying...
Hey Penile,
I think you were right in calling out the food hygiene standards and air pollution.
However, you messed up by saying that there is a culture of rape.
Yes, India can be a difficult country for solo female travelers but that doesn’t make rape to be the default culture. There are many women who live in India and don’t face these issues even though their lives might not be perfect. Its like saying that the US has a culture of misogyny and racism because of a few people and what we see being highlighted by an admin run by Project 2025 contributors.
Person of color and first generation immigrant; have faced discrimination on and off but have also found many welcoming Americans. Every country has its issues.
There is a culture that has a silent soft stance on rape. There have been many incidents of local migrant workers migrating from one part of the state to others, and raping and murdering minors! All while the government (especially the state Government of Punjab and the Central Government) continue to have soft or silent stance. And any opposition from anyone is crushed, its gotten so bad that the state governments have no started assassinating...
There is a culture that has a silent soft stance on rape. There have been many incidents of local migrant workers migrating from one part of the state to others, and raping and murdering minors! All while the government (especially the state Government of Punjab and the Central Government) continue to have soft or silent stance. And any opposition from anyone is crushed, its gotten so bad that the state governments have no started assassinating local rural leaders for speaking against or taking action against such cases. So when people say there is a culture of rape, there is because it's silently condoned with little to no action. And this is just a recent example, every day across all parts of the country it happens. From the physician killed and raped at her work, to the little boys and girls killed and raped, to the woman killed and raped on the Bus in Delhi. All whilst having an elected MP (Kirron Kher) who said something to the extend of women invite being sexually harassed or raped because of provocative clothes. Rape happens in the west too, but generally speaking there isn't a soft stance (socially or politically) against rapists and murders. You are right to say every country has issues, and no world is perfect, however a lot of countries fare better (and a lot fare worse too.)
@Harry12345. The air pollution is a chronic issue. At times so bad that select western airlines do not fly because of the risk it poses to its crew.
Food hygiene, is a generalization. I visit the country, im of Indian origin, my wife is a citizen of the country, and we see places with some of the best food quality hygiene, and some of the worst (no different than any country in the west...
@Harry12345. The air pollution is a chronic issue. At times so bad that select western airlines do not fly because of the risk it poses to its crew.
Food hygiene, is a generalization. I visit the country, im of Indian origin, my wife is a citizen of the country, and we see places with some of the best food quality hygiene, and some of the worst (no different than any country in the west tbh)
its just our gut microbiome isn't accustomed to the different flora, and it can attack us too when it views "foreign" food.
There is a more chronic issue of food adulteration, where one thinks they're drinking pure milk but it can be some foreign chemicals. That is more a plausible scenario. The analogy lies in the experience people make, I haven't had an experience where I ate food that lacked in hygiene.
Sadly, bashing Air India is a hobby for too many Indians living outside India, especially those who haven't flown it in many years; I unfortunately have some in my extended family. The same people will behave like meek sheep on a European or American carrier, even if there are issues. I have flown LHR - BOM round trip 8 times in the past year and with the exception of one delayed flight, have faced no...
Sadly, bashing Air India is a hobby for too many Indians living outside India, especially those who haven't flown it in many years; I unfortunately have some in my extended family. The same people will behave like meek sheep on a European or American carrier, even if there are issues. I have flown LHR - BOM round trip 8 times in the past year and with the exception of one delayed flight, have faced no problems. The EY frames even have wifi now, currently free. AI does have problems, especially on routes served by the inherited fleet which badly needs refurbishment, which needs to be sorted out.
Never been to India.
But the only time I ever felt unsafe in Singapore was in Little India. There were 3 of us, and we were entirely surrounded by hundreds of men densely packing the streets / courtyards. There was some kind of holiday or festival or something. Not a single woman in sight. Once we realized that we were entirely helpless and at the mercy of the crowd, we noped out of there ASAP.
Brown people feel much the same if they venture into a British pub or an American saloon...
@Indopithecus that's actually a reasonable point about how brown people might feel in British pubs or American saloons, especially with the added element of alcohol, soccer hooliganism in the UK, etc. But I would argue that's far more complex than a matter of "race". A Canadian person, or a Jewish person, or a university professor with a bow tie, etc, might feel similarly uneasy out of place.
@Penile many NRI's and Indians of western passports hold this sentiment. Fares in business one week out and extending in to December (which is a busy season) on AI are in the 35-3800 region. There is fare bit of skepticism and lack of Trust now against the brand. It also has to do with the fact that the Indian Government agencies and the media isn't always well regarded in the west. Not all, but a...
@Penile many NRI's and Indians of western passports hold this sentiment. Fares in business one week out and extending in to December (which is a busy season) on AI are in the 35-3800 region. There is fare bit of skepticism and lack of Trust now against the brand. It also has to do with the fact that the Indian Government agencies and the media isn't always well regarded in the west. Not all, but a handful of people believe they can't trust the words coming out of the Indian media and the Indian government. So while Tara can go on PR campaign, and do this do that to exemplify strict safety standards, trust is low partially because of corruption and buying good press and not delivering.
Seems very rich coming from a country where the admin is trying to censor media in every way possible. Again, as I mentioned there are bad apples everywhere. Doesnt make it a culture.
Western nations were formed on the basis of racism, oppression and colonization. Yet today nobody calls it their culture even though we see it as the dominant rhetoric with the folks in power. And it is not a cultural thing since...
Seems very rich coming from a country where the admin is trying to censor media in every way possible. Again, as I mentioned there are bad apples everywhere. Doesnt make it a culture.
Western nations were formed on the basis of racism, oppression and colonization. Yet today nobody calls it their culture even though we see it as the dominant rhetoric with the folks in power. And it is not a cultural thing since as I said there are many good meaning folks in each country,
No country is perfect and
What an absurdly stupid comment.
Air India is indeed a low quality airline, as most Indian people would agree. To stretch that into saying that there is no reason for “us (westerners)” to visit is beyond idiotic.
First - who are you to decide for anyone else ? And why would it make more sense for someone from Singapore or Japan to visit than someone from Sweden or Germany? India is a vast...
What an absurdly stupid comment.
Air India is indeed a low quality airline, as most Indian people would agree. To stretch that into saying that there is no reason for “us (westerners)” to visit is beyond idiotic.
First - who are you to decide for anyone else ? And why would it make more sense for someone from Singapore or Japan to visit than someone from Sweden or Germany? India is a vast country with exceptionally rich culture and stunning landscape. Food hygiene - definitely a concern, but one you can easily combat by knowing where to eat (I have never had food poisoning in India, and had multiple during US visits). Air quality in Delhi is very bad, but that’s not much of an issue outside the big cities and I remember the air quality at Bangalore being very good.
Regarding the business opportunities - you clearly need to do your homework.
To the person suggesting that India is problematic because they felt unsafe in Singapore : first, anyone feeling unsafe in Singapore makes me giggle (have you been to London or Madrid recently?). Second drawing conclusions about India from Little India in Singapore is probably as moronic as doing the same about China based on a visit to Chinatown in Sydney.
But...
But but...
I did my homework. Name me a SINGLE law firm in the top 20 by profitability that has an office in India. Law firms service high end business activity; where there are business opportunities, there are law firms, so law firm presence is an excellent proxy for business opportunity.
Are you aware that India, like many other countries, has restrictions on how global professional services firms can operate in the market? Same with audit firms. The big 4 operate under their name but in reality, it is just a label on a local partnership.
You sound like the offspring of a man who met his spouse at Thanksgiving dinner.
Every Indian is a rapist? Ummmk. Wish your mother would have swallowed you all those years ago. Your username seems to match that claim. Have a better life.
David, your reading comprehension skills (where did I say every Indian is a rapist?) are matched only by your etiquette (deplorable)
On a per capita basis, more women get raped every year in the US than in India. Just saying...
Lets not generalise India over here, its not a small country it is really huge! That's like generalising America as having a racist/white supremecist culture and school shootings culture happening everywhere, though it may only be in certain places!
The Southern part of India (like Kerala e.g) btw has excellent air quality, better than many American cities, and fantastic food hygiene as well as much safer than many American cities for women.