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India declines UN agency's offer to assist in ongoing Air India crash investigation: Report
This handout taken and posted on the X (formerly Twitter) account of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) On June 12, 2025 shows the back of an Air India plane after it crashed in a residential area near the airport in Ahmedabad. Image- AFP
India has not allowed a UN investigation team to join the ongoing Air India crash probe or be given observer status, reported news agency Reuters. The International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) earlier this week offered India its assistance to probe the crash of Boeing BA.N 787-8 Dreamliner, in which 274 people were killed in Ahmedabad.
The agency had previously offered its services during the downing of a Malaysian plane in 2014 and a Ukrainian jetliner in 2020. Both times, the agency was asked to assist. The ICAO had urged India to give it 'Observer status' in the ongoing probe; however, Indian authorities declined the request.
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Notably, India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) is leading the probe into one of the world's deadliest aviation accidents.
On Thursday (June 26), a major breakthrough was achieved as Indian authorities said they were able to download flight recorder data from the black box.
Earlier this week, an Indian aviation ministry official who declined to be named said the department has been 'following all the ICAO protocols.'
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