Air India plane crash: Bird hit, engine failure, or flap issue? Exact reason for AI-171 crash in Ahmedabad may take a year to confirm
Air India flight AI-171
crashed, killing all 241 on board. Two videos of the aircraft moments before the crash have surfaced on social media, raising key questions about what went wrong. Aviation experts and former airline officials are analysing the clips and suspect a possible dual engine failure as one of the main causes.
Experts question unretracted landing gear
The aircraft's landing gear remained extended even as it climbed past 400 feet, something pilots say is unusual. "Within 5 secs of lift off, pilots normally put the landing gear up," said Capt Amit Singh, an air safety expert told TOI. Capt Manoj Hathi, a former Air India official, added, "As soon as a positive rate of climb is reached, the landing gear is retracted."
Landing gear left down during climb increases drag and slows down the aircraft, making it harder to gain altitude. In normal conditions, retracting the landing gear is one of the first actions pilots take after ensuring a stable climb.
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Possible engine failure, fuel issues or bird hit
A major concern raised is why the gear stayed down. Capt Singh explained, "In case there is a distraction the pilots could forget to put the gear up. The distraction could be dual engine failure, bird hit or combination of both. The plume of dust as the aircraft crosses the runway end shows it was low on power and possibly a dual engine problem."
Capt Hathi echoed the possibility: "It's possible that a dual engine flame-out was the reason the landing gear could not be retracted. Dual engine failure could occur due to bird ingestion or fuel contamination. Looking at the trajectory and body angle of the aircraft, it appears as if the aircraft has stalled because of loss of speed."
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Other pilots, who spoke off record, also pointed to a rare dual engine failure — a situation with only seven recorded cases in the past 70 years.
Did Air India flight suffered a bird hit?
Gujarat has seen 462 bird strike cases in five years, with Ahmedabad airport reporting the highest number, according to Civil Aviation Ministry data shared in Parliament in December 2023. A
TOI
report from September 2023 also noted a 35% increase in such incidents in Ahmedabad, with 38 bird strikes recorded in 2022–23. In a 2009 case, a bird hit occurred at 2,700 feet when a flock of seagulls was sucked into the engines. In contrast, the recent Air India flight was flying much lower, leaving the pilots with little time or height to react.
MAYDAY call and aircraft behaviour hint at emergency
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) confirmed that a MAYDAY call was issued just seconds after take-off. Experts say this reinforces the engine failure theory. The aircraft is seen in videos flying low over a densely populated area. Moments before the crash, it appears the pilots raised the aircraft's nose, possibly to avoid hitting buildings — a move that may have caused further loss of airspeed.
"Even if the pilots had not pulled up the nose it would have continued to glide, descend and eventually crash," Capt Singh said.
Questions over flap settings during take-off
Flaps, which are critical for lift during take-off, have also come under scrutiny. While some pilots believe the flaps were not deployed, others argue the video footage shows otherwise. The exact status will be confirmed only after detailed analysis.
Investigation underway, final report due in one year
India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) is leading the investigation, following international norms under Annex 13 of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO). A preliminary report is expected within 30 days, but it is up to the Indian authorities to decide whether to make it public. The final report, which includes a complete analysis of causes and contributory factors, will be released by June 12 next year.
Annex 13 makes clear that the main goal of such investigations is not to assign blame, but to prevent similar accidents in the future.
(The article originally published in TOI)
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