Indian Carriers Breathe Sigh of Relief as Boeing 737 Fleets Cleared
Akasa Air and Air India Express have confirmed their Boeing 737 fleets are not affected by a recent US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) directive. The directive, released on August 7, 2026, requires inspections for potential cracks in the bearing strap located at the forward upper corner of the forward galley door for specific Boeing 737-8, 737-9, and 737-8200 models.
Akasa Air stated that its fleet of new Boeing 737 MAX aircraft will not reach the inspection threshold of 30,000 flight cycles for over 13 years. Meanwhile, Air India Express confirmed that its fleet of approximately 80 Boeing 737s does not require these inspections at this time.
Boeing has been working with operators on this issue since 2021 and noted that while the cracking issue has not been observed in the 737 MAX fleet, the directive was issued as a proactive measure to ensure safety across all models with similar design elements.