Air India AI-171 Crash Probe Indicates Engine Cutoff, Cockpit Confusion in Final Moments

The preliminary report of the investigation for the crash of Air India AI-171 on June 12 underscored that the Boeing 787-8 aircraft’s engine control switches, the Engine 1 and Engine 2 fuel cut off switches transitioned from RUN to CUTOFF position one after other with a time gap of 1 second.

The Engine N1 and N2 began to decrease from their take-off values as the fuel supply to the engines was cut off, according to the initial probe report released post-midnight by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB).

Confusion in the Cockpit

The report also said that in the cockpit recording, one of the pilots was heard asking the other pilot why he cutoff the fuel supply. While the confusion i22n the cockpit has been highlighted in the report, it does not indicate if the switches were toggled by one of the pilots or not. The report mentioned that no significant bird activity was observed in the flight path.

As reported by ET, the Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) has recorded one pilot asking "Why did you cutoff?" to which the other responded "I didn't do so." The Ram Air Turbine (RAT), a backup power device, was deployed automatically seconds later, signalling complete loss of engine thrust, as per the CCTV footage examined.

The pilot-in-command was 56 year old captain Sumeet Sabharwal with over 15,000 flying hours and 32 year old co-pilot Clive Kunder with over 3,400 hours, both sufficiently qualified to fly the aircraft and they did not have any recent duty irregularities or medical issues.

MAYDAY Call Announced

Thereafter, the aircraft started to lose altitude before crossing the airport perimeter wall. As per the Enhanced Airport Flight Recorder (EAFR) installed in the aircraft, a device that captures digital flight data and voice data from the Cockpit Area Microphone (CAM), the Engine 1 fuel cutoff switch was transitioned from CUTOFF To RUN at about 08:08:52 UTC—an attempt to recover thrust engines by the pilots but the low altitude of the aircraft stripped it from the time for the engines to recover to a level that would have allowed the aircraft to relight to required safe level.

At about 08:09:05 UTC, one of the pilots transmitted “MAYDAY MAYDAY MAYDAY”.

According to the report, the flight lasted about 30 second between lift-off and crash. The report also stated that at this stage, there are no recommended actions to B787-8 and/or GEGEnx-1B engine operators and manufacturers.

Meanwhile, Air India acknowledged the report in a statement issued on X. The airline said it was cooperating with Indian authorities but declined further comment, according to Reuters.

According to ANI, Boeing issued a statement following the AAIB preliminary investigation report of the Air India AI171 plane crash in Ahmedabad, saying, "Our thoughts remain with the loved ones of the passengers and crew on board Air India Flight 171, as well as everyone affected on the ground in Ahmedabad. We continue to support the investigation and our customer."

The AAIB, an office under India's civil aviation ministry, is heading the probe into the fatal Air India plane crash that killed all but one of the 242 people on board and 19 people on the ground on June 12 in Ahmedabad. The plane was en route to London Gatwick from Ahmedabad.