No fault in Boeing 787 fuel unit: US aviation body on AI crash

The head of the United States’ aviation regulator has ruled out any mechanical defect in the Boeing 787’s fuel control unit as the likely cause of the recent Air India crash that claimed 260 lives.

Bryan Bedford, Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), said investigators have found no evidence of a technical malfunction in the aircraft’s fuel system. Speaking at an aviation expo in Wisconsin, he said: “We are quite confident this wasn’t a mechanical fault in the Boeing fuel control unit.”

Bedford added that FAA teams had thoroughly examined the units, removed components for testing and conducted detailed inspections on other aircraft of the same type. “We’re also satisfied that there was no accidental or unintended operation of the fuel switches,” he said.

The investigation into the catastrophic crash of Air India’s Ahmedabad-London Gatwick flight, which killed 241 passengers and crew on board and 19 people on the ground, is now focusing on the operation of the aircraft’s fuel control switches.

These switches are critical safety components that regulate the flow of fuel to the engines, allowing pilots to start or shut down power during ground operations or respond to engine failure in flight.

A preliminary report from India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) revealed that both fuel switches suddenly flipped from “run” to “cutoff” shortly after takeoff, leading to a complete loss of engine power.

While the reason for this simultaneous shutdown remains under investigation, Reuters reported last week — citing a source familiar with the cockpit voice recordings — that the Captain may have manually turned off the fuel supply during a critical phase of flight.

Meanwhile, Air India, in a statement issued on Tuesday, confirmed that it had completed a full precautionary inspection of the locking mechanisms on fuel control switches across its Boeing 787 and 737 fleet. “No faults were found,” the airline said.

Although speculation around possible human error persists, which has been rejected by experts and former pilots, both Boeing and the FAA had earlier issued confidential advisories to stakeholders, reaffirming that the fuel switch locking systems onboard Dreamliners are safe.

India