An investigation into the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad is now at a crucial stage. Almost a month after the accident, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has released an initial report. The report claims that the aircraft lost balance just seconds after takeoff and collided with a building, resulting in the tragic loss of 260 lives.
According to news agencies, the report reveals that during the flight, control of the plane was in the hands of the co-pilot, while the captain was only monitoring. Suddenly, the fuel supply to both engines of the aircraft was cut off.
The Air India flight AI171 took off for London on June 12 at 1:38 PM. This Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner is considered highly advanced and reliable, and is one of the safest aircraft in the world. The cockpit had two pilots: Captain Sumit Sabharwal and Co-Pilot Clive Kunder.
Captain Sumit Sabharwal, aged 56, was a senior training pilot responsible for training other pilots. He had over 15,638 flight hours, with 8,596 of those on the Boeing 787. Co-Pilot Clive Kunder, aged 32, also had experience with over 1,100 hours in the Dreamliner. He joined Air India in 2017 and had a total flying experience of 3,403 hours.
The initial investigation report indicates that the co-pilot was flying the aircraft while Captain Sabharwal was monitoring. Just seconds after takeoff, the fuel switches for engines 1 and 2 abruptly shifted from ‘RUN’ to ‘CUTOFF’. In the cockpit voice recorder, one pilot asks, “Why did you cut off the fuel?” To which the other pilot replies, “I didn’t cut it off.” Seconds later, a MAYDAY call was made, and the aircraft lost control, crashing into a medical college hostel shortly after leaving Ahmedabad airport.
What other revelations are in the report? The AAIB’s initial report states that the fuel supply switches for both engines were turned off just after takeoff, causing the engines to stop working. Immediately after, communication between the pilots was recorded in the cockpit voice recorder.
The aircraft took off at 1:38:39 PM Indian time, and just 26 seconds later, at 1:39:05 PM, a pilot made a distress call saying, “MAYDAY… MAYDAY… MAYDAY…” Just moments later, the plane collided with a medical college hostel outside the airport perimeter. The engines N1 and N2 gradually lost power as the fuel supply was abruptly cut off. However, samples taken from the fuel tank and lines were found to be satisfactory during the investigation.
The AAIB has stated that both engines have been removed from the wreckage and stored safely in a hangar at the airport. Drone photography and videography were conducted at the crash site, and critical components have been separated for further investigation. So far, no confirmation of sabotage or technical failure has been officially made. The report has not recommended any action against the Boeing 787-8 or its GE GEnx-1B engines. The investigation is ongoing, and many more aspects may come to light in the final report next week.
The Air India plane crash resulted in the loss of 260 lives, including 242 passengers and crew members. Only one passenger survived the tragic incident.