In an internal memo, Air India CEO Campbell Wilson has said that the AAIB’s preliminary report of the Ahmedabad crash has raised additional questions. Wilson also defended the fitness of the cockpit crew and the airline’s track record of inspecting its fleet, Bloomberg reported after reviewing the memo. According to the AAIB report released last week, two fuel switches in the cockpit were moved to a cut-off position, which led Boeing 787 crash within 32 seconds after takeoff from Ahmedabad on June 12.
According to Bloomberg, Wilson wrote to employees about the report, “Unsurprisingly, it provided both greater clarity and opened additional questions.”
Wilson further wrote in the memo that there was no issue with the quality of fuel and no abnormality with the take-off roll. He also mentioned that the pilots had passed their mandatory pre-flight breathalyser and there were no observations pertaining to their medical status.
The preliminary report further added that there were no mechanical or maintenance issues with the aircraft or engines. However, it did not specify which pilot turned off the fuel switches. The report only provided a brief exchange between the pilots from the flight deck, which left several elements of the crash unclear.
The Air Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has identified pilot Clive Kunder, a pilot with roughly 1,100 flight hours, as the one flying a Boeing 787-8 during a recent incident, with senior pilot Sumeet Sabharwal monitoring. However, it is a common practice for pilots to switch flying duties when on longer journeys.
Notably, the report doesn’t reveal which pilot questioned why the fuel switches were turned off, and there’s no additional cockpit audio available beyond that brief moment. Experts reviewing the report highlighted that the fuel switches were turned off in one second but took 10 seconds for the first one and another four seconds for the second one to restart, preventing the crew from restoring engine power in time.
Investigators have found no issues with the Boeing aircraft or its GE Aerospace engines so far, stating no immediate actions are recommended for operators or manufacturers.