New Delhi: A shocking revelation from the preliminary investigation into the Ahmedabad plane crash has confirmed that both engines of the Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner shut down mid-air due to fuel control switches being accidentally left off, leading to one of India’s worst aviation tragedies in recent history.
The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), in its initial report submitted to the Civil Aviation Ministry, has ruled out a bird strike, contradicting early theories. Instead, the fatal error was traced to a manual oversight, where fuel switches controlling both engines were in the ‘off’ position during takeoff.
Startling details from the cockpit voice recorder captured a pilot asking, “Who turned off the fuel switches?” to which the co-pilot responded, “Not me.” Though the crew attempted to correct the error, the engines failed completely within seconds, and the aircraft crashed before power could be restored.
The Dreamliner, en route to London’s Gatwick Airport from Ahmedabad on June 14, was carrying 230 passengers. Only one person survived, making this disaster one of the deadliest in modern Indian aviation.
The aircraft was under the command of Captain Sumit Sabharwal, a veteran with over 8,600 flight hours, while First Officer Clive Kundar, who had 1,100 hours of flight experience, was at the controls. Both had reportedly received adequate rest prior to the flight.
Investigators say this rare double engine failure highlights an urgent need to re-examine pre-flight safety checks and cockpit procedures. The AAIB has called for a comprehensive probe into how such a basic yet catastrophic error went unnoticed.
