Air India Flight AI-171: A Catastrophic Descent from Takeoff to Tragedy

On the morning of June 12, 2025, a routine flight turned into one of the deadliest air disasters in India’s recent aviation history. Air India Flight AI-171, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner en route from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick, crashed less than 30 seconds after takeoff, killing 260 people, including 19 on the ground. A preliminary report by India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has reconstructed the chilling sequence of events that led to this catastrophic loss.

The London-bound Air India flight was carrying 242 people, including two pilots and 10 cabin crew members. Reuters/File Photo | Firstpost

A Routine Departure Turns Deadly

The aircraft, registered as VT-ANB, took off at approximately 08:08:39 UTC. Just moments after becoming airborne, an unexpected and highly unusual event occurred—both engine fuel control switches were moved from RUN to CUTOFF. This action effectively starved both engines of fuel, leading to a total loss of thrust.

Cockpit recordings captured one of the pilots exclaiming, “Why did you cut off the fuel?” to which the other pilot replied, “I did not do so.” The question immediately raised alarms among investigators: How could both switches—each of which requires a mechanical lift to disengage—have been toggled accidentally in rapid succession?

Within seconds, the aircraft entered a glide with no engine power. Although the crew attempted to reinitiate fuel flow by returning the switches to RUN, the engines did not relight in time. At such a low altitude—less than a few hundred feet above the ground—the Dreamliner had no room to recover.

Emergency Systems Couldn’t Save the Flight

As the engines shut down, the aircraft’s Ram Air Turbine (RAT) automatically deployed, supplying emergency hydraulic and electrical power. This is a standard safety mechanism triggered during a total power failure. Simultaneously, the pilots issued a distress call: “Mayday, mayday, mayday.”

Despite these efforts, the situation had spiraled beyond recovery. The aircraft, now gliding with both engines out, could not gain enough altitude or velocity to return to the runway or reach a safe landing spot. Within 30 seconds of takeoff, the aircraft crashed into the hostel building of Shardaben Medical College, adjacent to the airport, leading to widespread destruction and fire.

A Closer Look at the Aircraft and Crew

Air India’s Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner involved in the crash had completed more than 41,700 flight hours and had passed all routine maintenance checks, including a full inspection in 2023. There were no prior mechanical issues noted in recent maintenance logs. Additionally, no faults were found in the GE GEnx-1B engines that powered the aircraft.

The crew was highly experienced. Captain Sumeet Sabharwal, a veteran with over 15,600 hours of flying experience, was joined by First Officer Clive Kunder, who had more than 3,400 hours logged. Both had operated the Boeing 787 for several years, and their rest records before the flight were within regulated norms, ruling out fatigue as a contributing factor.

Design Flaw or Human Error?

The AAIB’s preliminary findings did not establish why or how the switches were turned off. The fuel control switches are designed with a locking mechanism that requires deliberate action to disengage. Investigators are now considering three main possibilities: pilot error, cockpit design flaws, or an uncommanded mechanical malfunction.

International scrutiny has intensified following the revelation of a 2018 FAA Service Bulletin that warned of possible vulnerabilities in the switch lock mechanisms. However, the recommendations were non-mandatory, and Air India had not implemented changes based on the advisory. There’s growing concern that cockpit ergonomics or inadvertent contact could have triggered the shutoff—but definitive proof remains elusive.

International Support and Ongoing Investigation

The investigation has drawn global collaboration. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), Boeing, GE Aviation, and the UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB-UK) are assisting their Indian counterparts. The aircraft’s flight data recorder (FDR) and cockpit voice recorder (CVR) are undergoing detailed analysis to clarify whether human error or a technical malfunction was to blame.

Meanwhile, public confidence in Air India and broader Indian aviation safety is under renewed scrutiny. Despite the absence of prior safety violations involving this aircraft model in India, this crash—marked by a technical anomaly and tragic timing—has shaken the aviation sector worldwide.

Aftermath and National Mourning

The crash left behind a trail of devastation. Firefighters and emergency responders took hours to douse the flames and recover bodies. Families mourned the loss of loved ones, and the nation collectively grieved the tragedy. Only one survivor, a British national seated near the rear, was pulled from the wreckage.

In the days following the disaster, civil aviation authorities grounded several 787s temporarily for switch inspections. Safety audits across fleets operating Dreamliners have begun, focusing especially on cockpit layouts and control redundancy.

Conclusion: A Race for Answers and Accountability

The crash of Air India Flight AI-171 has raised far-reaching questions. Was this a case of accidental human input, a rare simultaneous mechanical failure, or a design flaw that had gone unnoticed for years? Until a full report is released, the tragedy remains a haunting mystery.

What is clear, however, is the need for enhanced oversight, crew training on emergency protocols, and urgent evaluation of safety-critical cockpit mechanisms. The aviation world awaits the final AAIB report with the hope that it will not only explain the incident but also prevent such a nightmare from ever recurring.

(Sources: Firstpost, LiveMint, Times of India)