On 12th June 2025, Air India flight AI 171 crashed after takeoff, killing 241 people, including 12 crew members. Only one passenger survived this terrible accident.

Now, the Air Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) of India has released its first report about this crash of the Ahmedabad to London Boeing 787-8 flight.

According to the report, both engine fuel switches were suddenly moved to “OFF” just after takeoff. This action cut off fuel supply to both engines. In the cockpit voice recording, one pilot can be heard asking the other, “Why did you cut it?” The second pilot replied that he didn’t do it, and then they made a MAYDAY call. Although they tried to restart the engines, it was too late, and the plane crashed.

The report says it is still unknown whether the switches were turned off by mistake or on purpose. It also mentions there could have been a fault with the locking system of these switches, which normally do not move by themselves.

After this report came out, the Pilots' Association of India strongly objected. They said it is wrong to quickly blame the pilots without full investigation. Captain Sam Thomas, the head of the Pilots' Association, said, “The investigation is already treating pilots as guilty without proof, which is not fair.”

The captain and first officer were experienced, with over 15,000 and 3,000 flight hours respectively. The Pilots' Association also questioned why the media got access to the report before it was officially signed, and they demanded pilot representatives be included in the investigation process.

Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu said people should not rush to conclusions and wait for the final report. International agencies like the NTSB, FAA, Boeing, and others are also helping in this investigation.

A full and final report will be shared in the coming months.

Tags

• ahmedabad plane crash
• air india plane crash

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