Many heart-wrenching stories of victims and their grieving families are emerging following the tragic Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad. The AI 171 flight headed to London’s Gatwick airport, took off from Ahmedabad at 1:39 pm on June 12 with 242 people on board and nearly 100 tonnes of fuel. Just moments after takeoff, the pilots sent out a mayday call — their final message. Soon after, the plane crashed and was engulfed in flames.
Investigators are now working tirelessly to find out what went wrong just seconds after the Boeing 787 Dreamliner took off. They are carefully going through the wreckage and examining the plane’s voice and data recorders to understand the cause of the crash. According to international rules set by the UN aviation agency ICAO, a basic report must be shared within 30 days, while the full investigation should be completed within a year.
Air India plane crash: What has probe uncovered till now?
Many questions have risen post the Air India crash. Did both engines stop working because of bird strikes? Were the wing flaps extended incorrectly, making it harder for the heavy plane to lift off in the extreme heat? Was there a mistake made during engine maintenance? Did the crew accidentally do something that cut off fuel to both engines?
A multi-agency probe is underway to find an answer to all these questions. The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) is leading the investigation on the crash, with help from the Gujarat Police, Airports Authority of India (AAI), and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). At the same time, the United States’ National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has launched its own investigation, sending international aviation experts to the crash site in Ahmedabad.
All staff members involved in ground handling operations for the crashed flight have been questioned, and their statements have been documented, a Times of India report said, citing a source familiar with the investigation. Phones of key personnel who approved the aircraft for take-off have also been taken for further examination.
The CCTV footage from the airport, digital flight data recorder and the cockpit voice recorder that were recovered from the crash site, are also being thoroughly investigated. These are crucial pieces of evidence and in indicating what exactly went wrong.
According to a BBC report, three investigators have said that some of the early clues could come from the wreckage of the two engines, and of course, the black boxes.
Peter Goelz, a former managing director of US’s National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) told BBC that the damage to the engines can show whether they were working at the time of impact, as spinning turbines break in a different way than idle ones. If it turns out the engines had stopped producing power, then investigators will likely focus on what happened in the cockpit.
To get those answers, they will rely on the aircraft’s Enhanced Airborne Flight Recorders, also known as the black boxes. These devices store detailed flight data and cockpit audio, including pilot conversations, radio calls, and even background sounds inside the cockpit.
Authorities have earlier confirmed that both recorders have been recovered from the crash site, and they are expected to play a major role in uncovering the events that led to the deadly accident.