Air India pilot in Phuket-Delhi turbulence tests non-negative for psychoactive substances

Regulators confirmed the pilot of an Air India flight from Phuket to Delhi tested non-negative for psychoactive substances following a severe turbulence incident that injured passengers.

The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has officially reclassified an Air India flight from Phuket to Delhi from a severe turbulence encounter to an accident after multiple injuries, severe cabin damage, and a shocking post-flight medical finding where the pilot-in-command tested non-negative for psychoactive substances.

The incident involving Air India flight AI-2379, an Airbus A320neo carrying 145 passengers and six crew members, unfolded on August 4, 2026. While cruising at Flight Level 360, the aircraft suffered a sudden, sequential loss of its green, blue, and yellow hydraulic systems.

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The cascading system failures disengaged the autopilot, triggered a continuous repetitive chime, and caused a brief stall warning. During the violent mechanical upset, the aircraft pitched up 372 feet before plunging 292 feet.

The Co-Pilot was handling flight duties initially before the Pilot-in-Command (PIC) took over manual control. Within seconds, all three hydraulic systems miraculously regained pressure and restored control surfaces. Instead of diverting, the crew continued to Delhi and landed safely on Runway 11L.

Operating history records show the aircraft was flying under a Minimum Equipment List exemption due to an inoperative Power Transfer Unit flagged days prior.

Because the flight originated internationally, both flight deck crew members underwent mandatory post-flight medical screenings under DGCA guidelines. While the Co-Pilot passed all evaluations cleanly, initial screening kits and subsequent laboratory blood work returned a non-negative result for the PIC regarding psychoactive substances.

The AAIB's preliminary report stresses that this confirmation of psychoactive substance use is a severe safety violation. The agency has issued an immediate interim recommendation urging the Directorate General of Civil Aviation to take strict punitive and regulatory action on priority.

Because the seat-belt sign was switched off when the hydraulic failure and sudden altitude drop struck, chaos erupted inside the cabin. Twenty-four individuals—including 20 passengers and 4 cabin crew members—sustained injuries requiring medical attention.

Twenty people were treated and discharged for minor bumps and bruises, while four individuals required formal hospitalization for serious trauma.

The physical toll inside the cabin matched the violence of the mechanical failure. The aircraft sustained extensive non-structural damage, featuring cracked and dislodged overhead stowage bins, dislocated ceiling panels, broken handrails, smashed Passenger Service Units, an uprooted lavatory commode, and wrecked crew seats.

Fortunately, technical inspections confirmed the main airframe sustained no structural damage.

Investigators have successfully downloaded data from both the Solid-State Flight Data Recorder and the Solid-State Cockpit Voice Recorder. Technical representatives from Airbus and France’s Bureau d'Enquêtes et d'Analyses thoroughly inspected the aircraft frame mid-August, stripping hydraulic components and fluid samples for deep laboratory analysis.

The comprehensive AAIB investigation remains fully active as authorities piece together how mechanical failures and human factors converged on this near-disastrous flight.

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