Ahmedabad Air India crash: Did electric fire in AI171's tail cause engine malfunction? AAIB sleuths probe

Investigators probing the Ahmedabad Air India crash are trying to ascertain whether a "contained electric fire" in the tail assembly of the AI1171 Boeing aircraft during take-off led to the fatal incident on June 12. The fatal crash resulted in the death of  260 people. 

Investigators from the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) are planning to carry out a detailed analysis of the tail assembly components. "They hold the key for a detailed analysis of a possible malfunction in the electric supply of the aircraft during lift off,” an officer involved in the probe told The Indian Express. 

According to investigators, the wreckage of the tail assembly shows signs of a contained electric fire. However, investigators said the fire was restricted to only a few components located in the rear.

“It needs to be probed if the electric fire in the tail was due to a fault that originated in one of the flight components when it began rolling for take-off, or was it purely a fire following the impact. The fire was contained in the tail section, which, despite being embedded in the hostel mess of the BJ Medical College, did not spread to the structure or its electrical framework,” the official told the publication.

An official involved in the probe said, “Any malfunction of the electrical system that originated before the flight became airborne could have led to disruption of interconnected flight sensors and, in a cascading effect, triggered incorrect data to the ECU (Engine Control Unit) of the flight to cut off fuel supply."

The AAIB released a preliminary report of its probe on July 12, a month after the tragic crash. The London-bound Air India flight crashed soon after it took off from the Ahmedabad International Airport.