‘Why did you cut off ?’: Final exchange of Air India Pilots before Ahmedabad crash revealed in initial probe report
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Diverging Reports Breakdown
‘Why did you cut off ?’: Final exchange of Air India Pilots before Ahmedabad crash revealed in initial probe report
The cockpit voice recordings captured the last crucial exchange between the two pilots during the engine failure sequence moments before the deadly accident. The exchange took place moments after both engine fuel cutoff switches transitioned from ‘Run’ to ‘Cutoff’ at 13:38:42 IST after the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner reached a maximum speed of 180 knots indicated airspeed. As many as 260 people, including 241 passengers and crew onboard and 19 on the ground, were killed in the accident. One passenger on board the plane survived miraculously.
The 15-page report reveals that one of the pilots of Air India flight 171 asked his co-pilot, “Why did you cut off fuel?. The other pilot responded, “I did not do so.”
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The exchange took place moments after both engine fuel cutoff switches transitioned from ‘Run’ to ‘Cutoff’ at 13:38:42 IST after the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner reached a maximum speed of 180 knots indicated airspeed.
The AAIB report explores the sequence of events and engine behaviour leading up to the incident involving a Boeing 787-8 aircraft and offers the first official insight into what transpired before one of the worst accidents in Indian aviation history.
As many as 260 people, including 241 passengers and crew onboard and 19 on the ground, were killed in the accident. One passenger on board the plane survived miraculously.
According to the report, both engines shut down mid-air within seconds after takeoff. The fuel cutoff switches moved from RUN to CUTOFF one after another in just one second.
“When fuel control switches are moved from CUTOFF to RUN while the aircraft is in flight, each engine’s full authority dual engine control (FADEC) automatically manages a relight and thrust recovery sequence of ignition and fuel introduction,” it reads.
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Soon after, one of the pilots transmitted a MAYDAY alert. Air Traffic Control inquired about the call sign but did not receive a response. Minutes later, the aircraft crashed outside the airport boundary into a building.
The plane’s two pilots were Captain Sumeet Sabharwal, a Line Training Captain with 8,200 hours of flying experience, assisted by First Officer Clive Kundar, who had logged 1,100 flying hours.
Why did you cut off fuel?
The report said both pilots were medically fit and rested, with adequate experience. It also said that there was no immediate evidence of sabotage, but pointed to a known Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) advisory on a possible fuel switch flaw.