Air India has mandated immediate drug and medication screening for all pilots across the airline and its budget arm, Air India Express, after a captain on a Phuket-to-Delhi flight reportedly tested positive for marijuana following a serious mid-air incident on 4 August. The Airbus A320 lost approximately 91 metres (300 feet) of altitude shortly after departing Thailand, injuring up to 24 passengers and crew; both pilots have been removed from duties pending an investigation supported by Airbus and France's civil aviation safety agency, the BEA. The move goes beyond existing Indian regulations, which require only random testing of at least 10% of flight crew annually, and comes as Air India faces intense scrutiny following the June 2025 crash of Flight 171 shortly after take-off from Ahmedabad (a major city in western India), which killed 260 people and left only one survivor.