Nagpur: Another Air India Boeing 777 has been grounded after a critical spare part was removed, while the aircraft was undergoing maintenance at Air India Engineering Services Limited’s (AIESL) Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility in Nagpur.The aircraft, registered as VT-ALO, arrived in Nagpur in May for a scheduled overhaul that was expected to take about a month. More than three months later, it remains parked at the facility, awaiting a replacement for a key wing component that was removed and sent overseas for use on another aircraft.The development draws parallels with the case of another Boeing 777, VT-ALL, which remained stranded at the Nagpur MRO for six years after arriving for an overhaul. During that period, components were repeatedly removed from the aircraft and fitted on other Air India planes to keep them operational. VT-ALL finally returned to service in May this year, around the same time that VT-ALO arrived in Nagpur.According to sources, a slat — critical component of the aircraft’s wing system — was removed from VT-ALO and flown to Europe to be fitted on another Air India aircraft that had been grounded there. Slats form part of an aircraft’s high-lift system and extend from the leading edge of the wings during take-off and landing, increasing wing surface area and generating additional lift.Sources said VT-ALO could have returned to service at least a couple of months ago. However, when another Air India aircraft required a replacement slat, the component was taken from VT-ALO while it was undergoing maintenance in Nagpur. The expectation was that a replacement would arrive before the overhaul was completed. While maintenance work has since been finished, the aircraft continues to await the arrival of a replacement slat.A senior AIESL official in Delhi confirmed the development and said the replacement spare is expected to reach Nagpur at earliest. Meanwhile, a source associated with the airline said the plan had been to synchronise the arrival of the replacement component with the completion of maintenance work.AIESL officials pointed out the MRO depends on the airline for the supply of certain critical spares and that the matter now rests with Air India.VT-ALO is currently the only aircraft stationed at the Nagpur MRO. With the overhaul complete and the aircraft merely awaiting the replacement part, the facility has no fresh work orders. Sources said workloads remain healthy at AIESL’s other MRO facilities, including Delhi, but the Nagpur unit is dedicated exclusively to maintenance work on the Boeing 777 fleet. Air India currently operates 19 Boeing 777 aircraft, all of which depend on dedicated maintenance support and the timely availability of specialised spare parts.
