MatterFeed

More than a year after the catastrophic crash of Air India Flight 171 in Ahmedabad, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has informed the Supreme Court that it expects to finalize a draft report on the incident by October 2026. The disaster, which occurred on June 12, 2025, involved a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner bound for London Gatwick that crashed into the B.J. Medical College hostel shortly after takeoff from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport. The incident resulted in 260 fatalities, including 241 passengers and crew, as well as 19 individuals on the ground. Only one passenger on board survived the crash.

Key developments in the investigation:

Procedural Status: The AAIB stated that it has completed 49 of the 66 required procedural steps for the investigation and is currently in the core fact-finding phase, which includes technical and forensic examinations. International Oversight: The Bureau emphasized that the probe is an internationally governed investigation under the Chicago Convention, involving cooperation between the states of design, manufacture, and operation, rather than a purely domestic inquiry. Challenges: The AAIB noted that public speculation and media narratives attributing blame to the pilots have made some potential witnesses restrictive during interviews. Preliminary Findings: A preliminary report released in July 2025 indicated that both of the aircraft's fuel control switches moved from "RUN" to "CUTOFF" seconds after takeoff, resulting in a loss of thrust in both engines. Union Civil Aviation Minister K. Rammohan Naidu recently reiterated that the government is providing all necessary resources to the AAIB to ensure the investigation is thorough and objective. He emphasized that the primary goal remains to ascertain the facts to improve aviation safety rather than to assign liability.