Delhi, July 12 - India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), on July 11, 2025, released a preliminary report on the catastrophic crash of Air India Flight AI171, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner that plunged into a residential area in Ahmedabad just 32 seconds after takeoff on June 12, 2025, claiming 260 lives, including 241 passengers and crew onboard and 19 people on the ground. The report, a 15-page document mandated by International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) protocols to be submitted within 30 days of an accident, provides the first official insights into the tragedy that marked the first fatal crash of a Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The findings point to a critical and perplexing event: the fuel supply to both engines was cut off shortly after liftoff, raising questions about the circumstances that led to this action.
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The sequence of events outlined in the report is chilling. At 08:08:39 UTC, Flight AI171, bound for London Gatwick from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, lifted off normally, reaching a maximum recorded airspeed of 180 knots three seconds later. At 08:08:42 UTC, the fuel cutoff switches for both Engine 1 and Engine 2 transitioned from the "RUN" to the "CUTOFF" position, one after the other, with a one-second gap. This action halted the fuel flow to the GEnx-1B engines, causing them to spool down, as evidenced by the decreasing fan rotation speeds (N1 and N2). The aircraft’s Ram Air Turbine (RAT) automatically deployed to provide emergency hydraulic power, a fact corroborated by flight data and airport security footage. The cockpit voice recorder captured a critical exchange: one pilot asked the other, “Why did you cut off?” to which the other responded, “I didn’t.” Ten seconds later, at 08:08:52 UTC, the Engine 1 fuel switch was moved back to "RUN," followed by Engine 2 four seconds later. Despite this attempt to restore power, the engines failed to relight. At 08:09:05 UTC, the crew issued a desperate “MAYDAY MAYDAY MAYDAY” call to air traffic control, which received no response as the aircraft crashed 0.9 nautical miles from the runway, impacting a hostel complex at BJ Medical College.
The AAIB’s investigation, supported by experts from the Indian Air Force, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), Boeing, GE Aviation, and the FAA, has ruled out immediate mechanical failure as the cause. The report notes that no technical defects were reported prior to departure, and fuel samples showed no contamination. A 2018 FAA advisory on potential disengagement of fuel control switch locks was not acted upon by Air India, as it was not mandatory, but no defects in the switches have been confirmed since 2023. The aircraft, registered VT-ANB, had accumulated 41,868 flight hours and had recent engine installations in March and May 2025. The pilots, a 56-year-old captain with over 15,000 flight hours and a 32-year-old first officer with 3,400 hours, were deemed fit after pre-flight breathalyzer tests and had adequate rest.
The report refrains from assigning blame, focusing instead on factual data from the Enhanced Airborne Flight Recorder (EAFR) and cockpit voice recorder. The movement of the fuel switches, located on the throttle control module, remains unexplained, with investigators exploring whether it was inadvertent, intentional, or system-induced. The absence of safety recommendations for Boeing 787 operators or GE suggests no systemic design flaws. The wreckage, including both engines, has been secured for further forensic analysis, and the investigation continues, with a final report expected within months to address this devastating anomaly.