Union civil aviation minister Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu said on Tuesday that the black box of the Air India AI171 plane, which crashed in Ahmedabad on June 12 was in India only and being examined by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau. Tail of an Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner plane that crashed is seen stuck on a building after the incident in Ahmedabad.(REUTERS )

Naidu’s statement sought to dismiss reports of the black box being sent abroad for investigation.

The Gatwick-bound AI171 Boeing 787-7 Dreamliner plunged into the hostel complex of BJ Medical College in Meghani Nagar within minutes of its takeoff from the Sardar Vallabhbhai International Airport.

Of the 242 persons onboard the plane, only one individual survived. In addition, 29 people on the ground were also killed by the terrifying plane crash. A total of 270 persons lost their lives to the tragedy.

Officials recovered the black box of the Air India plane was recovered from the site on June 13.

The black box is a small machine that records information about an aircraft during its flight. The box helps with aviation investigations in case of any incident. The black box also comprises two recorders, a cockpit voice recorder for pilot voices and cockpit sounds, and a separate flight data recorder.

‘Let AAIB conduct probe’

Earlier, some reports had suggested that the Centre was going to send the black box to the US for analysis. However, Naidu has now dismissed any such claims, saying, “…it is all speculation. The black box is very much in India and it it currently being investigated by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB).”

The minister clarified that retrieving data from the black box is a very technical matter, refraining from providing a particular timeline for the results.

“Let the AAIB conduct the probe and go through the entire process,” he added.

Earlier, Naidu had said that decoding the black box is going to provide an in-depth insight into what happened on June 12, moments before the Air India plane crashed.

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Naidu spoke to reporters on the sidelines of the Helicopters & Small Aircraft Summit 2025 in Pune, organized by the FICCI in partnership with the ministry of civil aviation.

A high-level committee constituted by the central government is investigating the Ahmedabad plane crash. The committee is being headed by the home secretary and includes representatives, not below the rank of joint secretary, from the state and the Centre.

“The committee will have access to all records, including, among others, flight data, cockpit voice recorders, aircraft maintenance records, ATC Log and witness testimonies,” the order from the aviation ministry said, adding that the probe panel will publish its report within three months.