An Air India Airbus A320neo (registration VT-EXO) operating flight AI2379 from Phuket International Airport (HKT) to Indira Gandhi International Airport (DEL) lost pressure in all three hydraulic systems within four seconds while cruising at 36,000 feet on August 4, 2026. India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) preliminary report states the green system pressure loss was detected at 04:02:43 UTC, followed by the blue and yellow systems four seconds later. The autopilot disengaged at 04:02:48 UTC and a stall warning sounded for two seconds at 04:02:51 UTC.

The aircraft climbed 372 feet above its assigned altitude and then descended 292 feet below, a total vertical excursion of 664 feet. Hydraulic pressure returned within seconds, with the blue system recovering at approximately 04:02:52 UTC, followed by the yellow and green systems. The AAIB noted the three systems are independent, with separate reservoirs and no fluid transfer.

The seat belt signs were off at the time. Twenty passengers and four cabin crew received medical attention after landing in Delhi at 05:30 UTC, with four people hospitalized for serious injuries. Cabin damage included cracked ceiling panels, dislodged overhead bin doors, a broken emergency exit handle, and a lavatory commode torn from its mounting.

Neither the flight crew nor air traffic control reported adverse weather. Under DGCA Civil Aviation Requirements for flights originating outside India, both pilots underwent post-flight medical checks. Breath analyzer results were satisfactory, but the captain's psychoactive substance screening returned a non-negative result, confirmed by a laboratory blood test; the co-pilot tested negative in both screenings. The report does not identify the substance.

The AAIB issued an interim safety recommendation urging the DGCA to act against psychoactive substance abuse, calling the finding a serious concern, but drew no link between the captain's test result and the hydraulic failure. The aircraft had been dispatched from Phuket on July 28 under a Minimum Equipment List item covering the power transfer unit, an auxiliary pressure source for the green and yellow systems; the AAIB recorded the deferral but made no connection to the pressure losses. Airbus specialists, working through France's BEA, examined the aircraft from August 13 to 15, and hydraulic components and fluid samples have been removed for testing.