Air India crash probe ‘far from over,’ says CEO after preliminary report
Air India CEO Campbell Wilson has cautioned against drawing early conclusions from the ongoing investigation into last month's deadly crash in Ahmedabad, which killed 260 people.
In an internal memo shared Monday, Wilson stressed that the probe is still in its early stages, despite the release of a preliminary report by India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), News.Az reports, citing Reuters.
“The release of the preliminary report marked the point at which we, along with the world, began receiving additional details about what took place,” Wilson said in the memo, reviewed by Reuters. “Unsurprisingly, it provided both greater clarity and opened additional questions.”
The AAIB’s initial findings revealed apparent cockpit confusion just before the crash and noted that both engine fuel cutoff switches had flipped nearly simultaneously, causing the engines to lose fuel and power. The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner had taken off from Ahmedabad bound for London when it began losing thrust and rapidly descended, ultimately crashing near Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport on July 12.
Despite the details shared, Wilson emphasized that “the preliminary report identified no cause nor made any recommendations,” urging staff and the public to avoid speculation.
The report also stated that the aircraft had no mechanical or maintenance faults, and all required procedures had been followed. Boeing, the aircraft manufacturer, and GE, the supplier of the plane’s engines, were not issued any directives in the initial report.
The crash claimed the lives of 241 passengers and crew on board, along with 19 people on the ground. Only one passenger survived.
Air India has since come under wider scrutiny. On July 4, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) opened a separate investigation into Air India Express, the airline’s budget arm, after a Reuters report revealed it had failed to promptly replace mandated engine parts on an Airbus A320 and allegedly falsified records to show compliance.
Pilot representatives have pushed back against any assumption of human error in the Ahmedabad crash. ALPA India, affiliated with the International Federation of Air Line Pilots’ Associations, called for a “fair, fact-based inquiry.”
"The pilots' body must now be made part of the probe, at least as observers," ALPA India President Sam Thomas told Reuters on Sunday.
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