Air India crash report points to chip malfunction, says analyst
:: June 13, 2025
A preliminary report into last month's fatal Air India crash depicted confusion in the cockpit after the plane's engine fuel cutoff switches flipped almost simultaneously and starved the engines of fuel.
:: June 12, 2025
The Boeing 787 Dreamliner began to lose thrust and sink shortly after takeoff.
:: Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau
The report from Indian accident investigators did not say how the switches could have flipped to the cutoff position during the flight.
CHAN: "From reading the findings..."
Former pilot and senior lecturer at Buckinghamshire New University Marco Chan says he believes it was a chip malfunction rather than human error that led to the crash.
He points to a previously issued service bulletin from the engine manufacturer advising maintenance of a flawed chip to prevent signal loss.
:: Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau
'I believe the FAA has - together with GE, General Electric, the engine manufacturer - has issued a service bulletin, i.e. I believe it was about 11,000 cycles, they will have to replace the chip. And if it is not replaced or maintenance isn't done correctly, it could lead to intermittent loss of signal. Once you have a loss of signal, the fuel isn't commanded i.e. in the cut off position, then there's no fuel going to the engine.'
Chan says it would be a challenge for pilots to accidentally move the switches into the cutoff position.
'You have to physically sort of - not pull the pin - but if you have to pull the toggle out, then it can move to a different position. So, you do have to do it on purpose, not accidental knocking it to the wrong position. Very rarely that can happen, or close to zero.'
:: June 12, 2025
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, the report showed.
The Boeing 787 Dreamliner was bound for London from India's Ahmedabad.
The crash killed 260 people, making it the world's deadliest aviation accident in a decade.
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