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UPI
2 days ago
- General
- UPI
Analysis of flight recorder data from Air India crash gets underway
Air accident investigators in Delhi have begun studying data downloaded from two black boxes from the crash site of Air India flight 171 in Ahmedabad after they were recovered two days apart by State Disaster Response Force search teams earlier this month. File Photo by Hanif Sindh/UPI | License Photo June 27 (UPI) -- Indian air accident investigators have begun analysis of flight recorder data from the deadly Air India crash earlier in June after successfully recovering the information from the two black boxes on board. Investigators in Delhi began sifting through the data after an Air Accident Investigation Bureau team, assisted by U.S. National Transportation Safety Board specialists, downloaded it from the memory of the Crash Protection Module after safely extracting it from the front black box, the Indian Civil Aviation Ministry said Thursday in an update. "The analysis of Cockpit Voice Recorder and Flight Data Recorder data is underway. These efforts aim to reconstruct the sequence of events leading to the accident and identify contributing factors to enhance aviation safety and prevent future occurrences," said the ministry. However, it could be weeks before the conclusions drawn from the recorder data, which captures key information on the position of flap and throttle levers and engine and fuel parameters as well as conversation and sounds in the cockpit, are made public. London-bound Air India flight 171 crashed into a heavily populated area June 12 shortly after taking off from Ahmedabad's Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, killing all but one of the 242 passengers and crew and killing and injuring dozens more on the ground. The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, with two very senior, experienced pilots at the controls, was seen to lift off and climb normally before apparently stalling at around 600 feet and plummeting to the ground with its landing gear still down. The captain issued a mayday call, but air traffic control received no reply when it responded seconds later, creating the scene for one of civil aviation's most mysterious disasters involving an aircraft that is among the safest ever made. Experts said it was unusual for there to be such a long gap between finding the boxes at the crash site and downloading what was on them. Search teams discovered the CVR and FDR, known as Enhanced Airborne Flight Recorders on the 787, on June 13 and June 16, respectively, according to the aviation ministry. The news came after Indian authorities postponed sending the boxes to the United States for analysis as had been expected, with Indian Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Nadu confirming the data would initially be examined by India's AAIB experts. A decision on whether either of the flight recorders should be shipped overseas for further analysis would be taken once a comprehensive evaluation of technical, safety and security factors had been carried out by the AAIB, the government said Thursday. Indian authorities' approach has raised eyebrows amid intense focus on the safety record of the country's civil aviation sector in the wake of the disaster with the aviation watchdog issuing warnings over repeated aircraft maintenance and inspection failings at Delhi and Mumbai airports. The Civil Aviation Directorate General, which is carrying an appraisal of the industry separate to the Air India investigation in an effort to provide public reassurance, said the fact the issues were far from isolated incidents was indicative of "ineffective monitoring and inadequate rectification action." It also found that safety protocols and certain faults were ignored by some maintenance engineers when aircraft were in for servicing, and that they didn't always adhere to scheduled maintenance tasks and checks. Aircraft maintenance is highly regulated under standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization, but relies on domestic authorities for compliance and oversight.
UPI
20-06-2025
- General
- UPI
Air India identifies crew from crash, announces service reductions
Search and recovery teams examine the tail section of Air India flight 171 after it crashed in Ahmedabad, India last week. Photo by Hanif Sindh/UPI | License Photo June 20 (UPI) -- Air India on Friday named the cabin crew members who died in last week's crash aboard Flight AI171, which went down just after takeoff from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport in Ahmedabad, India. The airline posted to X a statement that identified the 10 crew members killed in the incident, and called them "beloved colleagues, cherished friends, and the soul of every journey they were a part of." Air India also posted the name of the flight's First Officer on Thursday, and then announced that a temporary reduction in flights aboard Boeing 787 and 777 aircraft would begin as of Saturday and continue into mid-July. "The reductions arise from the decision to voluntarily undertake enhanced pre-flight safety checks," the company explained in a social media post, "as well as accommodate additional flight durations arising from airspace closures in the Middle East." "The objective is to restore schedule stability and minimize last-minute inconvenience to passengers," it added. As a result, flights AI169/170 from Amritsar and AI145/146 from Mopa, both Indian cities, to London Gatwick have been suspended until at least July 15, while flight AI961/962 between Delhi, India, and Nairobi, Kenya, has been suspended until at least June 30. The frequency of flights to North America, Europe, Australia and East Asia continue but have been reduced until July 15. Air India Flight AI171, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft, was bound for London when it crashed last week in a populated area and struck a medical college shortly after takeoff, killing more than 260 people. Air India publicly identified the captain Tuesday. The investigation into why Flight AI171 crashed continues. It has been publicly stated that the plane had a new engine, as well as another that wasn't due for servicing until December. The aircraft's black box is being sent to the United States for analysis due to its reportedly being damaged in the crash. There has also been speculation that either two of its engines failed or there was either a total hydraulic or electronic malfunction. The entire Air India Dreamliner fleet has been under inspection, and so far, 26 out of its 33 Dreamliners have been returned to service.
UPI
13-06-2025
- General
- UPI
Sole Indian crash survivor doing well, but 'psychologically disturbed'
1 of 4 | Rescue workers use a stretcher to remove a victim at the scene of an Air India passenger plane that crashed in Ahmedabad, India, on Thursday. Photo by Hanif Sindh/UPI | License Photo June 13 (UPI) -- As the investigation continued Friday into the horrific Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner crash that killed at least 290 people, the sole survivor is doing well in hospital but is "psychologically disturbed," according to the Civil Hospital medical director. The jet with 242 people onboard crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad enroute to London, striking a hostel for B.J. Medical College and Civil Hospital students and relatives, a medical school. The total death toll is at least 290. Sole survivor and British national of Indian origin Vishwash Kumar Ramesh told the Hindustan Times it happened very fast. "Thirty seconds after takeoff, there was a loud noise and then the plane crashed," Ramesh said. "I don't know how I'm alive, how I exited the plane." Ramesh added, "I don't know how I survived. I saw people dying in front of my eyes -- the air hostesses, and two people I saw near me. ... I walked out of the rubble." He was seated in row 11A near a left-side window emergency exit in the economy section of the aircraft. He said he saw the exit, tried to get out through it and succeeded. Ramesh said he still can't believe he made it out alive. Prime Minister Narenda Modi visited him in the hospital. Modi said on X, "Met those injured in the aftermath of the tragic plane crash in Ahmedabad, including the lone survivor and assured them that we are with them and their families in this tough time. The entire nation is praying for their speedy recovery. The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board is assisting the investigation into the cause of the crash. "The NTSB will be leading a team of U.S. investigators traveling to India to assist the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau with its investigation into the crash of an Air India Boeing 787 in Ahmedabad, India, Thursday," the agency said on X. India's Directorate General of Civil Aviation said on X, "Aircraft immediately after departure from Runway 23, fell on ground outside the airport perimeter. heavy black smoke was seen coming from the accident site." In a statement on X Air India offered its deepest condolences to families of those killed and added, "The passengers comprised 169 Indian nationals, 53 British nationals, 7 Portuguese nationals and 1 Canadian national. "The survivor is a British national of Indian origin. ... Our efforts now are focused entirely on the needs of all those affected, their families and loved ones." The FAIMA Doctors Association said on X that "The wife of one super-specialist doctor was found dead." Fifty MBBS students were hospitalized in stable condition while two or three were in critical condition and four or five students were missing. Three to four relatives of resident doctors also are missing, according to FAIMA.
