The theory that the pilots of Air India flight AI 171 deliberately cut fuel to both engines seconds after take-off from Ahmedabad has drawn sharp criticism from aviation expert and former Indian Air Force Director Sanjeev Kapoor, who described the preliminary investigation report as both “incomplete” and “bizarre”.
The ill-fated Boeing 787 crashed into a student hostel complex shortly after take-off on 12 June, killing 241 of the 242 people on board. A month later, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) released its preliminary findings, but aviation experts have questioned the conclusions and the time taken to publish them.
Kapoor, speaking to an Indian news agency, dismissed the theory of pilot error. “Never, ever does a pilot issue a Mayday call lightly. The relevance of a Mayday means something grave has happened, and there's no doubt both engines failed. But how they failed is simply not covered in this preliminary report,” he said.
The cockpit voice recorder captured a chilling conversation between the pilots as one questioned the other about the sudden cut-off in fuel supply. The AAIB report states that the fuel control switches for both engines were moved from ‘RUN’ to ‘CUTOFF’ within one second – causing an immediate and catastrophic loss of thrust.
“It is absolutely bizarre to suggest that any sane pilot would deliberately operate the fuel cut-off switches right after take-off. Why would a pilot, having just lifted off manually, turn the aircraft 170 degrees just to shut down the engines? It defies all logic,” Kapoor remarked.
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Kapoor was equally critical of the time taken by the AAIB to release the report. “It took 20 days for this report to come out, which is far too long. Given that they had all the data, this report should have contained much more detail than it does,” he said.
According to the report, following the engine shutdown, the aircraft deployed its Ram Air Turbine (RAT) automatically to maintain essential hydraulic functions. The crew attempted to restart both engines. Only one responded. With insufficient thrust and altitude, the Dreamliner clipped trees beyond the airport perimeter and crashed into a nearby hostel building.
The report mentions that three distress calls were issued by the crew. But for Kapoor and others in the aviation field, the crucial question remains unanswered – what caused the engines to stop receiving fuel in the first place?
Many within the aviation community believe that the probe has not adequately addressed potential mechanical or system failures. The aircraft was reportedly cleared for service hours before the flight, raising questions about last-minute faults or sabotage.
With public confidence shaken and families still awaiting closure, experts are calling for greater transparency, urgency and technical clarity in the final report, expected later this year.
For now, the skies remain clouded with doubt, and a grieving nation still seeks answers.
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