Ahmedabad Plane Crash: Probe Focuses on Fuel-Control Switches
The AAIB's preliminary report has raised more questions than answers, and the aviation industry is eagerly awaiting the final report to understand the circumstances surrounding the crash. The debate over cockpit cameras has also sparked a discussion about the balance between safety and privacy, with experts calling for confidentiality assurances before considering their installation.
A preliminary report by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has found that both engines of Air India Flight 171 shut down within one second of takeoff, leading to a rapid loss of altitude and resulting in the deaths of 260 people in the Ahmedabad plane crash.
The report cited a black box audio recording in which one pilot asked, "Why did you cut off?" and the other denied doing so. The AAIB report stated that the fuel-control switches had moved to the "cutoff" position, but did not assign blame for the incident. Experts are cautious about assigning blame for the crash, citing a similar incident on an All Nippon Airways Boeing 787 in 2019, where the aircraft's software mistakenly shut down one of the engines.
The investigation is ongoing, with a final report from India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau expected within a year. The recent Air India crash has reignited a decades-old debate over the installation of video cameras in airline cockpits to complement existing voice and flight data recorders. International Air Transport Association head Willie Walsh advocates for video cameras, citing their potential to fill gaps in investigations, particularly regarding pilot mental health.
As the investigation into the Ahmedabad plane crash continues, the focus remains on determining the cause of the fuel-control switches moving to the "cutoff" position, and whether this was a result of human error or a technical issue. The outcome of the investigation will be crucial in preventing similar incidents in the future and ensuring the safety of air travel.