Ahead of the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) preliminary report on July 12, sources privy to a US-led probe claimed that the twin engines of the AI 171 flight might have been turned off immediately after the takeoff.
The sources claimed that there was no apparent fault with the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, citing early conclusions on the US side. They said the flight lost thrust after the switches controlling the fuel flow to the twin engines were turned off, according to The Wall Street Journal. These switches are usually kept on during the flight. However, the deployment of the ram air turbine (RAT), which is the flight's emergency power system, indicates that the switches were off.
These claims emerged as the AAIB is set to reveal its preliminary findings about the air crash cause. AAIB launched the probe led by a multi-disciplinary team on June 13. These include the AAIB chief, an aviation medicine specialist, an Air Traffic Control officer and representatives from the US National Transportation Safety Board.
The authorities have recovered and examined the fight data and cockpit voice recorders from the black box.
Captain Summet Sabharwal had more than 10,000 flying hours of experience on wide-body jets while co-pilot Clive Kunder had 3,400 hours to his credit.
The London-bound Air India flight AI 171 crashed into a medical hostel building immediately after takeoff from the Ahmedabad airport, killing 260 people, including 241 passengers. One flier survived the crash. This was the first time that the Boeing's best-selling Dreamliner was involved in a fatal crash.
