Air India A320 expired certificate suspension has triggered regulatory scrutiny and internal action after a 164 seat aircraft operated eight commercial flights without a valid safety clearance. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has grounded the jet, de rostered involved staff and ordered Air India to carry out a comprehensive compliance review of its airworthiness procedures.
What went wrong with the A320’s ARC
The lapse centres on the Airworthiness Review Certificate (ARC), an annual document that confirms an aircraft’s main Certificate of Airworthiness remains valid after checks on maintenance records, physical condition and regulatory compliance. Under normal delegation, Air India’s Continuing Airworthiness Management Organisation issues ARCs for its fleet, but after the 2024 Vistara merger, the DGCA decided to issue the first post merger ARC for all 70 ex Vistara aircraft itself.
According to the regulator, ARCs for 69 aircraft were processed without issue, while the 70th A320 was grounded for an engine change and its ARC quietly expired during maintenance. Once the engine work was complete, the aircraft was mistakenly released back into service and flew eight revenue sectors on November 24 and 25 before the missing ARC was detected; Air India then reported the error to the DGCA on November 26.
Regulatory and airline response
In response to the Air India A320 expired certificate suspension case, the DGCA has categorised the event as a serious safety lapse and ordered the jet grounded until a fresh ARC is issued. All relevant technical and management personnel have been de rostered with immediate effect pending the outcome of the probe, and sources indicate that disciplinary action could extend to department heads once responsibility is fully established.
Air India has suspended staff linked to the decision chain and says it is cooperating fully with the regulator while running an internal investigation to identify systemic gaps. The airline has pledged to strengthen oversight of ARC tracking, improve interfaces between engineering, quality and flight operations teams, and tighten controls introduced after the Air India A320 expired certificate suspension so that no aircraft can be dispatched with lapsed mandatory documentation.
Gulf Repost continues to follow the Air India A320 expired certificate suspension story alongside wider aviation coverage, including safety developments, route launches, fleet changes and regulatory reforms that affect passengers and airlines across India and the wider region.
