Air India plane crash report: Former commercial pilot and YouTuber Gaurav Taneja, also known as Flying Beast, has criticised the preliminary report released by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) on the Air India AI171 crash. In his post, Taneja said, “As expected, ‘Blame the deceased pilots’. They can’t come back to defend themselves. Boeing has a lot of questions to answer. BBC already gave Boeing a clean chit.”
What did the AAIB report say about the Air India plane crash?
The AAIB report revealed that both engine fuel control switches on the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner moved to the ‘CUTOFF’ position within seconds after takeoff, causing a dual-engine shutdown. The cockpit voice recorder captured a tense exchange: one pilot asked, “Why did you cut off (fuel)?” while the other responded, “I did not do it.” The report does not identify the pilots involved in the exchange, adding to the mystery of what transpired in the cockpit.
Although the crew attempted to restart the engines, only one showed partial recovery. Engine 2 failed to stabilise, and the aircraft eventually crashed into the BJ Medical College hostel complex, killing all 241 passengers and 19 people on the ground.
Pilot body raises strong objections
Reacting to the report, a pilots’ association issued a sharp statement criticising the direction of the investigation. “We are surprised at the secrecy surrounding these investigations. Suitably qualified personnel have not been included in this crucial probe,” the statement read.
It added that the mention of a technical bulletin on possible fuel switch gate malfunctions points to a mechanical issue being overlooked. “The investigation seems to presume pilot error, and we strongly object to this line of thought,” the association said, further questioning why the report was circulated to the media without a signatory.
Aviation expert flags potential Boeing fault
Aviation safety expert Mark D Martin, CEO of Martin Consulting, also expressed alarm over the report’s findings. He pointed out that tampering with fuel switches during takeoff is not something any trained pilot would attempt. “The switches are located in the mid-console, away from the pilot’s primary visual field. No competent pilot would fiddle with them during takeoff,” he said.
Martin also criticised the omission of cockpit camera footage in the report. “The Boeing 787 is equipped with cameras that record pilot actions. Why hasn’t this footage been mentioned?” he asked. He warned that the incident may indicate a larger issue, a “Fuel Switch Runaway” risk across Boeing’s Dreamliner fleet and called for urgent global regulatory scrutiny.
Online Reactions
The release of the preliminary report on the Air India AI171 crash has sparked criticism online, with many users questioning the timing and handling of its publication.
One user on X pointed out that releasing the report at 2–3 am IST gave Western media a time zone advantage to shape the narrative first.
Others criticised the Indian government for failing to hold a press conference to clarify the findings, accusing it of allowing misinformation to spread unchecked. He argued that this lack of proactive communication weakened India’s position in global narrative warfare and risked portraying the pilots as solely responsible.
A user on X wrote, “Who is blaming? International media? Yes, They will obviously blame when the Civil Aviation Ministry and GoI casually release the preliminary report rather than hosting PC for national and international media to set the record straight instead of releasing on their website and giving air to fake news. This AI 171 was a national tragedy and it is the responsibility of GoI to approach the way the world is shaping up to narrative warfare rather than ‘No, I do good work, my work speaks’ mindset. I blame myself first when I know the hostile enemy surrounded me and I am still behaving stupid.”
Another user suggested that Boeing would naturally try to distance itself from the incident to avoid financial fallout and cancelled aircraft orders. “This is all part of the script to pin the blame on the pilots. Boeing will do everything it can to distance itself because any fault could mean cancelled orders and massive financial losses,” wrote another user on X.