India, Aug. 11 -- The pilot-in-command (PIC) of an Air India Phuket-Delhi flight that faced sudden loss of altitude last week, causing injuries to 17 people, tested positive for a psychoactive substance during a post-flight screening, people familiar with the developments said on Tuesday.

The pilot's preliminary drug test had returned "non-negative", a government release said earlier. "The pilot in question has not tested positive in the confirmatory test. He has tested positive for Marijuana," an official aware of the details in the report told HT.

On August 4, the Phuket-Delhi flight AI2379 experienced a sudden loss of altitude of around 300 feet during cruise, causing injuries to 13 passengers and four crew members. An initial statem...