Civil aviation minister hails AAIB for initial report on Air India crash

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Union Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu on Saturday hailed the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) for conducting a "transparent and professional" investigation into the Air India flight AI171 crash.

The Air India Boeing 787-8 aircraft crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad's Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport on June 12, resulting in the deaths of 260 individuals, including 229 passengers, 12 crew members, and 19 people on the ground.

Speaking to ANI, the Union Minister said the preliminary report released by AAIB on Friday is under review by the Civil Aviation Ministry, adding that further comments will be made only after the final report is released.

"I like to appreciate the job done by the AIBB; very commendable job. It was a very challenging and tough task infact for the first time safely securing the blackbox and trying to decode the data and everything done in India itself in the lab in Delhi AIBB is the first of its kind, so I like to appreciate all the efforts they have put in to do a very transparent and very mature professional way the investigation has been done and also all the international protocols have been followed," Naidu said.

"This is a preliminary report; at the ministry, we are analysing it... We are coordinating with AIBB for any support they need. We are hoping that the final reports come out soon so that we can arrive at some conclusion," he added.

Naidu further stated that pilots and crew are the backbone of the aviation industry and assured that all necessary steps would be taken to uphold safety standards.

On Friday, India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) released the preliminary report into the tragic crash of Air India flight AI171.

The report outlines a harrowing sequence of events that unfolded within 90 seconds of takeoff, as both engines of the aircraft shut down unexpectedly during the initial climb, leading to a catastrophic loss of thrust and rapid descent.

Flight data recovered from the aircraft's Enhanced Airborne Flight Recorder (EAFR) revealed that the fuel cutoff switches for both engines were inadvertently moved from RUN to CUTOFF, one after the other within a 1-second interval, at an altitude just moments after liftoff. One pilot was heard asking the other, "Why did you cut off?" to which the response was, "I did not."

This uncommanded shutdown triggered the deployment of the Ram Air Turbine (RAT), and the aircraft began losing altitude almost immediately, unable to sustain powered flight.

According to the AAIB, the pilots re-engaged the fuel switches in an attempt to relight both engines. Engine 1 showed signs of recovering thrust, but Engine 2 failed to stabilise. The aircraft, which had briefly reached a speed of 180 knots, was already descending and failed to regain altitude. The final distress call -- a "MAYDAY" -- was transmitted at 08:09 UTC, just seconds before the aircraft crashed into residential buildings outside the airport perimeter.