Air India CEO Campbell Wilson on Monday said that the initial investigation into last month’s deadly crash of a Boeing Dreamliner found no mechanical or maintenance issues with the aircraft or its engines, citing the preliminary report released by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB).
The June 12 crash of Flight AI 171, en route from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick, resulted in the deaths of 260 people when the aircraft plummeted into a building shortly after takeoff. The AAIB released its preliminary findings on Saturday.
In a communication marked to select Air India employees, Wilson said, “All mandatory maintenance tasks had been completed. There was no issue with the quality of fuel and no abnormality with the take-off roll.”
Wilson also pointed out that both pilots had cleared mandatory pre-flight breath analyser tests, and that the AAIB report made no observations related to their medical status.
As the AAIB identified no cause nor made any recommendations in its initial report, the Air India CEO urged against “drawing premature conclusions as the investigation is far from over”.
Out of an abundance of caution, Wilson said the airline had inspected its entire 787 Dreamliner fleet within days of the crash and found all aircraft fit for service.
“We continue to perform necessary checks on all planes, as we will any new ones that authorities may suggest,” he added.
A five-member team appointed by the AAIB is probing the Air India flight AI 171 crash. In their preliminary report, investigators said the fuel switches to the engines were cut off within a gap of 1 second immediately after takeoff and caused confusion in the cockpit.
The 15-page probe report, however, did not say how this happened or who did it.
Citing cockpit voice recording, the report said one pilot asked why the switch was cut off and the other pilot responded that he did not do so.