Guwahati: A preliminary investigation report into the crash of Air India’s Boeing 787-8 aircraft on June 12 in Ahmedabad has revealed that both engines shut down moments after take-off due to a shift in the fuel control switches.
The incident claimed the lives of at least 260 people.
Ready for a challenge? Click here to take our quiz and show off your knowledge!
According to the report released by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) late on Friday, the fuel switches for both engines transitioned from “RUN” to “CUTOFF” within seconds of the aircraft becoming airborne.
The first transition occurred three seconds after liftoff at 1:38:42 pm, and the second followed one second later.
The report stops short of concluding whether the switch movements were accidental or intentional. It notes that cockpit voice recordings captured one pilot asking the other why the fuel supply was cut off, to which the latter reportedly denied doing so.
Ready for a challenge? Click here to take our quiz and show off your knowledge!
However, the report does not specify which pilot made the query and does not include the transcript of the recording.
Aviation safety expert Amit Singh, founder of the NGO Safety Matters, commented that further clarity is needed. “Until the investigation explains how a supposedly locked fuel switch could have moved to CUTOFF and provides a detailed sequence of failure messages and aircraft response, the full truth remains elusive,” he said.
At the time of the crash, First Officer Clive Kundar, with 1,100 flying hours, was piloting the aircraft. Captain Sumeet Sabharwal, with 8,200 hours of experience, was monitoring the flight.
Thirty seconds after liftoff, one of the pilots transmitted a distress call—“MAYDAY MAYDAY MAYDAY.” The air traffic control tower responded with an inquiry for identification, but received no reply. Seconds later, at 1:39 pm, the aircraft was observed crashing just beyond the airport’s boundary.
Ten seconds after the switches moved to CUTOFF, they returned to their original RUN positions. One of the engines began to recover, but the second engine failed to respond, and deceleration continued. The aircraft’s data recording ceased at 1:39:11 p.m., 17 seconds after the engine switches were restored.
The AAIB also confirmed that the Ram Air Turbine (RAT), a backup power source, deployed automatically during the initial climb—a typical response in the event of total engine failure. There was no evidence of bird activity near the flight path, ruling out bird strike as a contributing factor.
The aircraft had no prior recorded issues with the fuel control switches since 2023, when the throttle control module had last been replaced. While a 2018 advisory from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) warned of potential disengagement of the fuel switch locking feature, Air India reportedly did not carry out related inspections, citing the non-mandatory nature of the bulletin.
The AAIB stated that no additional airworthiness directives were currently in place for the Boeing 787-8 or the GE GEnx-1B engines on this aircraft. The investigation remains ongoing, with further evidence and information being collected from involved stakeholders.
Both Air India and Boeing acknowledged receipt of the preliminary report. Air India stated it is cooperating fully with investigators and regulatory bodies. Boeing affirmed its continued support for the probe and its customer.
Per international aviation norms, a preliminary report is required within 30 days of an accident. While it outlines factual details, it does not assign cause, pending a more detailed final investigation.