A new report on the tragic Air India crash has stunned the country. It shows the pilots were confused about the engine fuel switches moments before the jet went down. The accident killed 260 people and is now being called the worst aviation disaster in a decade.
The Boeing 787 Dreamliner was flying from Ahmedabad to London. Just after takeoff, it began to lose power. The engines were not getting fuel. A backup power source called the ram air turbine popped out, a clear sign that the engines had failed.
Inside the cockpit, things were chaotic. One pilot asked the other, “Why did you cut off the fuel?” The reply? “I didn’t.”
That chilling moment was recorded just seconds before the crash.
What Went Wrong?
The report from India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) says both fuel switches flipped to cutoff within one second of each other. This switch stops fuel from reaching the engine. Usually, it’s used only on the ground after landing or during an emergency. But there was no emergency here.
Experts are shocked.
“Fuel switches don’t flip on their own,” said aviation safety expert Anthony Brickhouse.
If a pilot did it, why would they do it during takeoff?
Another expert, John Nance, said it would take about a second to flip both switches by hand. It looks like someone did it. But who? And why? That’s still not clear.
Cockpit Voice Mystery
The voice recording doesn’t say who said what. We don’t know if it was Captain Sumeet Sabharwal or First Officer Clive Kunder who made the Mayday call or asked the question. Sabharwal had over 15,000 flying hours and was an instructor. Kunder had 3,400 hours.
The switches were found in the “run” position at the crash site, not “cutoff.” This suggests someone may have tried to restart the engines just before the crash. The plane hit trees and a chimney before slamming into a building in flames.
Air India confirmed the report and said it is fully cooperating. But it didn’t say anything more. Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu asked people not to jump to conclusions until the final report is ready.
The final report will reveal more. But for now, the country is left asking:
How could this happen? And can it happen again?
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