A new video by aviation analyst Vikram V, better known as Wyngx on YouTube, has cast fresh doubt on the preliminary findings of the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau into the Air India AI-171 crash. In his latest detailed documentary on AI 171 documentary, he painstakingly recreated the final moments of the ill-fated Boeing 787 using a 3D model of the aircraft and surrounding neighbourhood. By matching and stabilising publicly available footage frame by frame, he pieced together a simulation that challenges widely circulated theories and raises questions about the official narrative.
Vikram is known for his cinematic reconstructions and meticulous storytelling on aviation safety. He is a seasoned creator with over a decade of experience, and previously also shared a rare early-response video, methodically debunking the widely circulated theories surrounding the crash.
The video raises three pertinent questions as he goes on to junk theories around accidental fuel switch cut off, whether they were never activated or if a software activated them.
1- How did the plane continue gaining speed after cut-off?
In the video, he mentioned that as per the preliminary report of the AAIB, the takeoff roll began at 1:37:37 pm and it continued to gain speed for the next 56 seconds until it hit a V1 speed of 153 knots, the speed at which the plane had to take off. As per the prelim report, the expert said, at 1:38:42, the plane reached its max speed of 180 knots. Immediately after this, the fuel cutoff switches for engine 1 and engine 2 are moved to the cutoff position, the report mentioned.
The expert argued that the report says that the plane hit a maximum speed of 180 knots and immediately afterwards, the two engine fuel switches were switched off. “But intuitively you would expect the speed to stop rising once the engines are shut off, not before it, right?” he asked.
He said that it was odd that the report claimed that the max speed was hit before the engine cut off as this was the whole reason why he wanted to simulate the crash. Arguing based on his simulation, he said as the plane rolls down the runway, the sim speed matches what the interim report says until it touches the speed of 180 knots. However, he argued, soon after it instead of slowing down, the sim plane actually kept accelerating for the next five seconds until it reached a speed of 196 knots.
2- Were the fuel switches moved from run to cut-off positions?
The video states there was no solid proof that switches cut off fuel. He added that the conversation between the pilots suggests the switches were moved, a theory that the preliminary report has given a further push. Five seconds after maximum speed, the ram air turbine starts producing hydraulic power and somewhere between these two points – one pilot asks the other ‘Why did you turn it off’ and the other pilot says that he did not. Five seconds later at 1:38:52, the left engine switch goes back to the run position and four seconds later the right engine switch goes back to the run position as well. The pilots gave a mayday call at 1:39:05 pm.
The switches in the cockpit have certain safeguards to prevent any accidental movement. The switches have three levels of safeguards to – the switch is spring-loaded and so it needs to be pinched and lifted against spring pressure. “Second, there are raised guards near the switches to prevent the hand from accidentally touching it. And thirdly, there are mechanical stops near the base, which also prevents accidental activation,” he added.
He argued that it was hard to believe that both switches were moved accidentally within a second, which makes theory 2 unlikely. The expert then said the only theory he has no argument against is that the switches were moved manually.
He concluded, if the switches were moved, the only reason could be ‘intentional activation’ and there is no other possibility based on his understanding.
3- The ELT mystery: How did it not survive?
The black box of the plane suffered severe damage, and so did the electronic locator transmitter (ELT). The ELT is a device that sends out radio signals when there is a crash and it is used by the rescue teams to identify where the crash happened.
This has been used in cases like Germanwings 9525 or MH370. However, in the case of Air India 171, the ELT just didn’t work. According to the prelim report, “the ELT was never activated.”
The expert argued that there could be two reasons behind this.
- The pilots never armed the ELT, which he said is quite unlikely.
- The other and plausible explanation is that the ELT is actually fixed right next to the Rear black box. It suffered a very similar damage to what the rear black box suffered.
Four theories of what might have happened
The preliminary report was criticised by the pilots body and others as the report hinted at some deliberate attempts by pilot(s) to cut off the fuel. To address the concern, the expert lists four different theories on what might have happened.
- Switch was intentionally moved to the cutoff position by someone in the cockpit
- Switch was accidentally moved by someone in the cockpit
- A software feature caused the two switches to move to the cutoff position
- The switches never moved to the cutoff position and something else caused the engines to flame.
He rejected theories 4 and 3 saying that in case of number 4, the black box should not have recorded the movement of the cut-off switch, if there was no such movement. Showing the diagram, he argued that wire runs straight from the physical switch to the flight recorder and its only job is to record the real physical position of the switch every one second.
As for theory 3, he said a software could have moved the switches to cut-off position. This is called the TCMA (Thrust Control Malfunction Accommodation). The aviation expert opined that the software works if it believes the engine’s power is exceeding safe limits.
He said the TCMA doesn’t work through the cockpit fuel switches at all, and instead it physically closes a high pressure shutoff valve deep inside the engine cutting off fuel supply directly.
“Once this valve closes it cannot be reversed by the pilots and it requires maintenance action to reset the system,” he said, adding that in the case of AI-171, the engines restarted successfully later in flight. This means if the TCMA was the root cause, the engines could not have restarted. “So this isn’t a TCMA failure,” he concluded.
How was the simulation done?
Vikram used long hours for the simulation so that it fits the right trajectory of the plane. In the video, he explained that he first noticed the blurred CCTV of the plane during take off and used photoshop frame by frame to stabilise it.
Then to understand the actual position of the plane at every single frame, he matched the virtual camera that matches the original CCTV camera. Vikram said he had to find three things –
- Where was the cctv camera placed in the real world?
- What type of camera was this so that he can find the sensor size?
- And what focal length was the camera filming at?
“To figure out where the camera was placed in the real world I used this watchtower and two road markings and a gate and cross-referenced it with google maps,” he added.
After thorough research, he found that the cameras used at Ahmedabad airport is made by a company called Infanova and the sensor size that they use is approximately 1 by 2 inches. For the focal length, he said it could have been anything. “So it was a manual process of locking the camera in place and playing with the virtual camera’s focal length until the 3d environment matched the source footage. And once the camera was locked, I matched the 3d airplane at each frame with the position of the real AI-171 in the footage,” he added.
He used the second image the RAT photograph from the interim report from this camera’s position and matched it with the ground plan. The plane and the simulation plane matched exactly the same, clearing grounds for doubts during the simulation process.
Air India plane AI-171 flying from Ahmedabad to Gatwick in London crashed on June 12, 2025 killing all but one passenger, and students of a medical college where it crashed and exploded. It left behind grieving families and numerous questions as to what happened within seconds, leading one of the worst accidents in the world’s aviation history.
The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) is conducting a probe into the case, whereas aviation experts have also come forward to share their insights. And one such insight has raised serious questions on both – the preliminary report and what actually might have happened inside the cockpit.