Air India to test all pilots for banned substances - BBC News

It comes after one of its planes suddenly lost altitude last week, with a number of passengers injured.

Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, The airline said in a memo that the move would reassure passengers and stakeholders

Air India is to test all of its pilots for banned substances, starting immediately.

It comes after an incident last week in which its Phuket to Delhi flight suddenly lost altitude, with a preliminary report saying the senior pilot had to retake their substance test. Reports say they had tested positive for marijuana.

Pilots at the airline's budget arm, Air India Express, will also be subject to the tests from Thursday.

Existing rules require at least 10% of pilots to be tested at random.