Air India crash: Pilots' association calls out AAIB report 'bias', cites 'lack of transparency'

An organisation representing Indian pilots worldwide on Saturday criticised the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau’s (AAIB) preliminary report of the June 12 Air India crash in Ahmedabad.

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According to the Airline Pilots' Association of India (ALPA India), the report, which they claimed was "leaked to (the) media", carried no official signature or attribution, which made them question the veracity of the report.

"The tone and direction of the investigation suggest a bias toward pilot error. We categorically reject this presumption and insist on a fair, fact-based inquiry," states Captain Sam Thomas, President, ALPA India.

The AAIB preliminary report on the London-bound Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner's crash at Ahmedabad, released on Saturday, pointed out that the fuel cut-off switches of both engines of the flight had turned off simultaneously, cutting off fuel supply to both engines.

Accordinng to the report, this could have led to the flight failing to attain enough thrust to lift-off properly, crashing soon after into a medical college hostel. 241 people died onboard, while 34 people—who had been in the vicinity of the crash site died.

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Calling out a "lack of transparency" in the preliminary report, Thomas points out a number of issues with the investigation, urging that it be allowed to participate in the investigation process, "in the very least, as observers".

The ALPA statement also pointed out a Wall Street Journal article on July 10 that had mentioned the inadvertent movement of the fuel control switches, questioning how such sensitive details could have been leaked to the media ahead of the official release date of the preliminary report.

The statement also questions whether the aircraft had been fully compliant with all the clauses of a serviceability bulletin, prior to take-off on June 12.

Notably, 7 years ago, fuel control switches had been flagged by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) as a potential issue on Boeing flights—an issue that Air India had not inspected at the time, since the FAA suggestions were advisory and not mandatory.

The airline had even replaced the now-destroyed flight's throttle control module twice (in 2019 and 2023), but these replacements were not related to fuel switches.

According to Union Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu, AAIB's July 12 report is just a preliminary one, due to which its findings could change as more information comes to light in the coming days.

India