Report Reveals Tragic Air India Crash Attributed to Engine Fuel Cut-Off
(MENAFN) A preliminary report on the tragic crash of an Air India flight in western Gujarat last month, which claimed 260 lives, has shed new light on the moments leading up to the disaster. The investigation, released Saturday, revealed that the plane's engine fuel control switches were moved to the "cut-off" position just before the crash.
The flight, bound for the UK, crashed into a hostel at a local medical college. Remarkably, one passenger survived the incident by leaping from the aircraft before impact. Among those on board were 169 Indian nationals, 53 British nationals, seven Portuguese citizens, and a Canadian.
According to the report from India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), the plane reached a peak airspeed of “180 knots … and immediately thereafter, the Engine 1 and Engine 2 fuel cutoff switches transitioned from RUN to CUTOFF position one after another with a time gap of 01 sec.”
The report continued, explaining that the “engine N1 and N2” levels started to fall from their optimal values, directly after the fuel was cut off. "In the cockpit voice recording, one of the pilots is heard asking the other why did he cut off. The other pilot responded that he did not do so," the report stated.
Following this, the investigation detailed the sequence of engine recovery attempts. After the switches were transitioned from cut-off to run, “engine 1’s core deceleration stopped, reversed, and started to progress to recover,y and engine 2 was able to relight but could not arrest core speed deceleration and re-introduced fuel repeatedly to increase core speed acceleration and recovery. The EAFR (Enhanced Airborne Flight Recorder) then recording stopped.”
The AAIB confirmed that the investigation is ongoing, with authorities continuing to examine additional evidence, data, and records from relevant parties.
In a statement, Air India confirmed its full cooperation with the ongoing probe, stating that they are working “closely with stakeholders, including regulators. We continue to fully cooperate with the AAIB and other authorities as their investigation progresses.”
This investigation is expected to provide more clarity on the circumstances behind the fatal crash in the coming weeks.
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the
information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept
any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images,
videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information
contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright
issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.
Legal Disclaimer:
EIN Presswire provides this news content "as is" without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.
