- The captain of an Air India Phuket-Delhi flight has tested positive for marijuana in a confirmatory drug test, according to a source familiar with the matter.
- India's Ministry of Civil Aviation summoned Air India CEO Campbell Wilson over the incident, which involved an Airbus A320neo aircraft.
- The summons came days after Indian authorities opened an investigation into the incident, which injured 13 passengers and four crew members.
- The flight from the Thai tourist city experienced a momentary altitude variation while flying over the eastern Indian state of Odisha, and the aircraft, carrying 137 passengers and eight crew members, landed safely in Delhi.
- On Sunday, the Ministry of Civil Aviation said the captain's initial screening for psychoactive substances produced a result requiring confirmatory laboratory testing, and Air India said it had not been informed of the results.
- Air India and the ministry did not respond to requests for comment, but Wilson told news channels the airline had briefed the ministry on the status of the investigation.
The captain of an Air India flight from Phuket to Delhi has tested positive for marijuana, leading to a summons for CEO Campbell Wilson by India's Ministry of Civil Aviation.1
"The captain's initial screening for psychoactive substances produced a result requiring confirmatory laboratory testing," the ministry stated.67
The incident, which occurred on an Airbus A320neo, involved a "momentary altitude variation" that injured 13 passengers and 4 crew members.45
The flight, carrying 137 passengers and 8 crew members, landed safely in Delhi.
Wilson confirmed that the airline had briefed the ministry on the investigation's status, but Air India had not been informed of the test results prior to the summons.
The ministry's investigation into the altitude incident is ongoing, raising concerns about safety protocols within the airline.
“The incident involved an Airbus A320neo that experienced a momentary altitude variation over Odisha, injuring 13 passengers and four crew. The ministry's summons came days after authorities opened an investigation, and Wilson said the airline had briefed the ministry on the status of the probe.”
