More Air India passengers experienced aircraft quality and maintenance issues in the past year, seeing a sharp 24-percentage-point jump compared to 2024, according to the latest findings from a LocalCircles survey. The survey reveals that 79% of fliers who took Air India flights in the last 12 months encountered problems related to aircraft upkeep, up from 55% a year ago, making it the single biggest concern among passengers.

The rise comes at a time when Air India is under scrutiny from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) for serious operational lapses. In recent weeks, the regulator issued a show cause notice to the airline for breaching flight duty limits and directed it to remove officials responsible for scheduling crew in violation of licensing, rest, and recency norms.

Conducted across 307 districts and drawing over 15,000 responses, the LocalCircles survey highlights other growing passenger concerns as well. Baggage handling issues were reported by 48% of respondents, up from 38% in 2024. Complaints about entertainment systems rose from 24% to 36%, and dissatisfaction with customer service also increased from 24% to 31%. While there were some improvements, as timeliness complaints dropped from 69% to 48% during the same comparison period, and concerns around staff attitude fell from 38% to 31%, the rising trend in key service areas reflects a broader trust deficit.

The growing dissatisfaction has been mirrored by a string of mid-air returns and emergency landings in recent months, including flights to Hong Kong, Ranchi, and Ho Chi Minh City. Earlier this year, Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan publicly criticised Air India after being assigned a broken seat on a domestic flight, calling out the airline’s deteriorating service standards even under Tata Group ownership.

The sharp rise in maintenance-related complaints has triggered fresh calls for a high-level review. While the DGCA continues to investigate the causes of the June 12 Air India crash in Ahmedabad, experts argue that systemic safety and service issues warrant intervention beyond the regulator’s purview, possibly through a joint panel with the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA).