Air India crash report shows pilot confusion over engine switch movement, Asia News
The Boeing 787 Dreamliner bound for London from the Indian city of Ahmedabad immediately began to lose thrust and sink down, according to the report on the world's deadliest aviation accident in a decade released on Saturday (July 12) by Indian accident investigators.
The report by India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) about the June 12 crash shortly after takeoff raises fresh questions over the position of the critical engine fuel cutoff switches, while suggesting that Boeing and engine maker GE had no apparent responsibility for the accident.
The crash is a challenge for Tata Group's ambitious campaign to restore Air India's reputation and revamp its fleet, after taking the carrier over from the government in 2022.
Almost immediately after the plane lifted off the ground, CCTV footage shows a backup energy source called a ram air turbine had deployed, indicating a loss of power from the engines.
In the flight's final moment, one pilot was heard on the cockpit voice recorder asking the other why he cut off the fuel. "The other pilot responded that he did not do so," the report said.
It did not identify which remarks were made by the flight's captain and which by the first officer, nor which pilot transmitted "Mayday, Mayday, Mayday" just before the crash.
The commanding pilot of the Air India plane was Sumeet Sabharwal, 56, who had a total flying experience of 15,638 hours and, according to the Indian government, was also an Air India instructor. His co-pilot was Clive Kunder, 32, who had 3,403 hours of total experience.
[[nid:719995]]
The fuel switches had almost simultaneously flipped from run to cutoff just after takeoff. The preliminary report did not say how the switches could have flipped to the cutoff position during the flight.
Experts have said a pilot would not be able to accidentally move the fuel switches.
"If they were moved because of a pilot, why?" asked US aviation safety expert Anthony Brickhouse.
The switches flipped a second apart, the report said, roughly the time it would take to shift one and then the other, according to US aviation expert John Nance. He added that a pilot would normally never turn the switches off in flight, especially as the plane is starting to climb.
Flipping to cutoff almost immediately cuts the engines. It is most often used to turn engines off once a plane has arrived at its airport gate and in certain emergency situations, such as an engine fire. The report does not indicate there was any emergency requiring an engine cutoff.
At the crash site, both fuel switches were found in the run position and there had been indications of both engines relighting before the low-altitude crash, said the report, which was released around 1:30 a.m. IST on Saturday (4am Singapore time).
Air India acknowledged the report in a statement. The carrier said it was cooperating with Indian authorities but declined further comment.
The US National Transportation Safety Board thanked Indian officials for their co-operation in a statement and noted that there were no recommended actions in the report aimed at operators of Boeing 787 jets or the GE engines.
The US Federal Aviation Administration said its priority was to follow the facts where they lead and it was committed to promptly addressing any risks identified throughout the process.
Boeing said it continued to support the investigation and its customer, Air India. GE Aerospace did not respond immediately to a request for comment. Crash probe
The AAIB, an office under India's civil aviation ministry, is leading the probe into the crash, which killed all but one of the 242 people on board and 19 others on the ground.
Most air crashes are caused by multiple factors, with a preliminary report due 30 days after the accident according to international rules, and a final report expected within a year.
The plane's black boxes, combined cockpit voice recorders and flight data recorders, were recovered in the days following the crash and later downloaded in India.
Black boxes provide crucial data such as altitude, airspeed and final pilot conversations which help in narrowing down possible causes of the crash.
Air India has been under intense scrutiny since the crash.
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency said it plans to investigate its budget airline, Air India Express, after Reuters reported the carrier did not follow a directive to change engine parts of an Airbus A320 in a timely manner and falsified records to show compliance.
India's aviation watchdog has also warned Air India for breaching rules for flying three Airbus planes with overdue checks on escape slides and in June warned it about "serious violations" of pilot duty timings.
India is banking on a boom in aviation to support wider development goals, with New Delhi saying it wants India to be a job-creating global aviation hub along the lines of Dubai, which currently handles much of the country's international traffic.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
6 hours ago
- Straits Times
Fuel was cut off during take-off: Preliminary report of Air India crash
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox In the cockpit voice recording, the report says, 'one of the pilots is heard asking the other why did he cut off. The other pilot responded that he did not do so'. – The fuel control switch went off within three seconds of take-off, leading both engines to shut down moments before the Air India Boeing 787 London-bound flight crashed in Ahmedabad, said a preliminary report by the Indian government. The 15-page report was released by India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) late on July 11, detailing findings from its probe into the plane crash on June 12 that killed 260 people – 229 passengers, 12 crew members, and 19 individuals on the ground. Only one passenger miraculously survived. The crux of the preliminary report is its revelation that 'the Engine 1 and Engine 2 fuel cut-off switches transitioned from RUN to CUTOFF position one after another with a time gap of 01 second'. In the cockpit voice recording, the report says, 'one of the pilots is heard asking the other why did he cut off. The other pilot responded that he did not do so'. Within 32 seconds of taking off, the plane had crashed into buildings just outside the Sardar Vallabhai Patel airport, including a medical college hostel. These details were retrieved from an Enhanced Airborne Flight Recorder (EAFR), commonly known as the black box, in the forward section of the plane. The rear black box was substantially damaged, and no data could be downloaded. The report lists damage to the aircraft parts and data from flight recorders. It does not ascertain reasons for the crash, or who is responsible for it. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. World US slaps 30% tariffs on EU and Mexico; EU warns of countermeasures Singapore S'pore shows what's possible when digital innovation is matched with purpose: UK foreign secretary Singapore Casual racism should be tackled by getting more people to understand it is not acceptable: David Neo Singapore Pulling back the curtain: A backstage look at the 2025 NDP show segment Singapore $3 cashback for hawker centre meals and shopping at heartland stores with DBS PayLah initiative Singapore Body of 62-year-old man recovered from waters off East Coast Park Asia Aerobridge hits Qantas plane at Sydney Airport, damaging engine, delaying flight The possibility of one of the pilots inadvertently hitting the switch off is remote, said Mr Hemanth DP, chief executive of the Hyderabad-based Asia Pacific Flight Training Academy. The lock safety mechanism of 'lift and twist' is built into the Boeing's fuel controls so that pilots cannot just switch off the fuel to the engine by mistake, he explained. 'The fuel control switch cannot be turned off by mistake if the lock system was there. Even if there was an engine problem, like a fire or debris, the pilot would not switch both engines off while airborne,' he said, adding that it sounded like the pilots were surprised when they realised that the fuel switch had turned off and they switched it on again to try and prevent the crash. 'Unfortunately, they couldn't do much in 30 seconds,' Mr Hemanth said. Possible design flaw? Based on the preliminary report, experts are divided on whether to attribute the crash to an aircraft design flaw or human error. The government report says the particular Boeing 787-8 aircraft had a valid airworthiness certificate from 2025. However, it notes that the United States' Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin (SAIB) on Dec 17, 2018, regarding 'the potential disengagement of the fuel control switch locking feature'. This was based on reports of operators of Boeing 737 planes in which the fuel control switches were installed with the lock disengaged. Similar fuel switch and lock systems manufactured by Honeywell are installed in various Boeing models, including the Boeing 787-8, the type of plane that crashed in Ahmedabad. The SAIB from 2018 warned that should the locking mechanism of the fuel switch be disengaged, it 'could result in inadvertent operation that could result in unintended switch movement between the fuel supply and fuel cut-off positions'. Usually, to move the fuel switch when the lock is engaged, 'it is necessary for the pilot to lift the switch up while transitioning the switch position', the bulletin noted. If the locking feature is disengaged, as it was in the 737s the FAA had examined in 2018, the fuel switch could be moved from Run to Cutoff without lifting the switch, running the risk of 'potential of inadvertent operation' of the switch. 'Inadvertent operation of the switch could result in an unintended consequence, such as an in-flight engine shutdown,' the SAIB said. The FAA did not deem the issue an 'unsafe condition' mandating corrective action, but recommended that all owners and operators of the affected planes check that the locking feature of the fuel control switch was engaged, and replace the switch if the lock was found to be disengaged. ST has reached out to the FAA with queries. The crash in Ahmedabad has renewed the long-standing concerns about Boeing's safety lapses in manufacturing, which whistleblowers like Mr John Barnett, a former Boeing quality manager, flagged before his mysterious death in 2024 . Denying his accusations, Boeing said that all its aircraft were built to the highest levels of safety and quality. The company insisted that 'safety, quality and integrity are at the core of Boeing's values'. Safety lapse or human error? India's preliminary report says that Air India did not carry out the recommended inspections as 'the SAIB was advisory and not mandatory'. Maintenance records of the crashed aircraft show that the throttle control module was replaced in 2019 and 2023 for reasons not linked to the fuel control switch, but the report also says there was no defect reported on the fuel control switch since 2023. Both fuel control switches going off 'is highly mysterious and needs detailed investigation, especially in light of the December 2018 FAA directive on the fuel control switches', said Mr Sanjay Lazar, chief executive of Pune-based aviation consultation firm Avaialaz Consultants. To know if 'it could have happened mechanically or technically on its own', the complete transcript of the cockpit voice recorder and a probe into the fuel switches are necessary, he added. Retired airline pilot and aircraft safety advisor Captain Mohan Ranganathan told ST that if there was a serious issue in the fuel switch's locking mechanism, the FAA would have insisted on a mandatory fix. 'That it is an advisory means they didn't consider that it can happen,' he said. 'It can only be a deliberate human intervention that moved the fuel switch,' said Capt Ranganathan, given that both fuel switches did not have simultaneous failure, but were cut off one second apart. 'The report has not clearly identified which pilot handled the fuel selector,' he added. Although the report refers to them as 'one pilot' and 'the other pilot', Capt Ranganathan highlighted that it does say that the co-pilot was flying the aircraft, which means the senior pilot in command was monitoring the take-off check-list items, which includes the fuel selector. A full cockpit voice recording will help identify who said what, because the pilots' headphone mics will have been recorded on different sides, he said. Final report expected within a year Most of the experts ST spoke with dismissed speculations of 'pilot suicide' making the rounds on television channels and social media in India, saying there was no evidence behind such a conspiracy theory. 'The reported statements itself show that both pilots were unaware as to how the fuel switch had turned from ON to OFF,' Mr Lazar noted. The preliminary report also says that 'both pilots had adequate rest prior to operating this flight', and that there was no significant bird activity to suggest a bird strike, putting paid to theories floated by experts and aviation enthusiasts soon after the fatal crash. The flight had adequate fuel of 54,200kg enough for its journey to London Gatwick, and the take-off weight of 213,401kg was within allowable limits of 218,183kg. There were no dangerous goods on the plane. Investigations are ongoing, and a final report is expected within a year.
International Business Times
10 hours ago
- International Business Times
Air India Pilots Made Fatal Error as Probe Reveals Plane's Fuel Supply Was Cut Off Moments Before It Crashed Killing More Than 270 People
A preliminary report on last month's Air India crash, which killed 241 people, with a sole survivor miraculously walking away, found that the aircraft's engine fuel cutoff switch was flipped just three seconds after takeoff. The pilots of the plane were heard questioning one another about whether the plane's fuel supply had been turned off just moments before the aircraft crashed, according to the report. the Boeing 787 Dreamliner likely lost power when the fuel cutoff switches were flipped almost simultaneously, cutting off fuel to the engines. This meant the aircraft began losing thrust and started sinking moments after taking off from Ahmedabad for London, according to Indian accident investigators. Pilots Made Major Blunder It is unclear how or why the switch was flipped, cutting off fuel to the engines and causing the London-bound Boeing 787 Dreamliner to rapidly lose thrust and crash on June 12. "The Engine N1 and N2 began to decrease from their take-off values as the fuel supply to the engines was cut off," the report said. The pilots of Air India Flight 171 may have played a role in the tragic crash, as the fuel cutoff switch is not something that can be easily flipped by mistake, according to The US Sun. These switches are typically used to shut down both engines simultaneously — either after arriving at the airport gate or in emergency situations that demand an immediate shutdown. However, the investigation report by India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau found no evidence of any emergency prior to the crash that would justify using the fuel cutoff. The crash also claimed the lives of 19 additional people on the ground when the aircraft crashed into a medical college in Ahmedabad, India. Cockpit Audio Reveals Everything The report cited cockpit audio in which one pilot questioned the other about why the fuel had been shut off. The other pilot responded, claiming he hadn't done it. Moments later, one of the pilots issued a panicked mayday call before the aircraft went down, though the report did not identify which pilot made the distress call. Investigators at the crash site found that the fuel cutoff switches were in the "run" position, suggesting that both engines restarted shortly before the impact. The experienced flight crew—a captain and a first officer—had a combined total of 19,000 hours of flight experience. U.S. aviation expert Anthony Brickhouse said that the ongoing investigation will likely focus on why the switches moved in a manner that doesn't align with standard flight operations. "Did they move on their own or did they move because of the pilots? And if they were moved because of a pilot, why?" Brickhouse said. Both black boxes from the ill-fated flight — containing the cockpit voice recordings and flight data — were recovered from the debris a few days after the accident. Investigators will now analyze the data to uncover any additional factors that may have led to the crash. British citizen Vishwash Kumar Ramesh was the only person to survive the Air India tragedy, which also claimed the life of one of his brothers, who had been seated just a few rows away. The 40-year-old, bruised and shaken, was seen limping away from the wreckage, still holding onto his boarding pass. "When I opened my eyes, I realized I was alive," he said from his hospital bed the day after the tragedy.
AsiaOne
19 hours ago
- AsiaOne
Who were the two pilots who flew the Air India jet that crashed?, Asia News
NEW DELHI - Investigators probing a deadly Air India crash said in a preliminary report that the aircraft's engine fuel switches were flipped to an off position briefly, leading to confusion in the cockpit and putting focus on the pilots flying the Boeing 787. Below is a brief profile of the two pilots based on the preliminary investigation report and media reports: Captain Sumeet Sabharwal The 56-year-old had an airline transport pilot's licence that was valid until May 14, 2026. He had obtained clearances to fly as pilot-in-command on several aircraft including the Boeing 787 and 777 and the Airbus A310. He had total flying experience of 15,638 hours, of which 8,596 hours were on a Boeing 787. Sabharwal had called his family from the airport, assuring them he would ring again after landing in London, according to a Times of India report. A pilot who had briefly interacted with him told Reuters he was a "gentleman." First Officer Clive Kunder The 32-year-old had a commercial pilot license which was issued in 2020 and valid until Sept 26, 2025. He had obtained clearances to fly Cessna 172 and Piper PA-34 Seneca aircraft as pilot-in-command and as co-pilot on Airbus A320 and Boeing 787 jets. He had total flying experience of 3,403 hours. Of that, 1,128 hours of experience were as a 787 co-pilot. Since his school-going days Kunder was passionate about flying, and in 2012, began serving as a pilot, Indian media reported, citing his relatives. He joined Air India in 2017. [[nid:720108]]
