Air India Crash Probe: Fuel Supply Cut-Off Identified as Main Cause

The preliminary report on the Air India crash attributes the cause to the cutting off of fuel supply to the engines, likely due to the movement of the fuel cutoff switches after takeoff. The switches must be open to allow fuel to flow into the engines, and their closure caused the engines to starve, resulting in the crash. The report was published by India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau.

The preliminary report on the Air India Flight 171 crash has attributed the cause to the cutting off of fuel supply to the engines, likely due to the movement of the fuel cutoff switches after takeoff. The switches must be open to allow fuel to flow into the engines, and their closure caused the engines to starve, resulting in the crash. The report, published by India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), has raised questions about the safety of these switches on Boeing aircraft.

The AAIB report, released on July 11, 2025, stated that just seconds after reaching its maximum speed of 180 knots during takeoff, both engine fuel switches moved from 'RUN' to 'CUTOFF' within one second of each other, cutting off thrust to the engines [1]. The aircraft achieved a maximum recorded airspeed of 180 knots and immediately thereafter, the engine 1 and engine 2 fuel cutoff switches transitioned from 'RUN' to 'CUTOFF' position one after another with a time gap of one second [1].

The fuel switches were flipped back to 'RUN' after 14 seconds, triggering the aircraft’s auto relight sequence. However, by then, both engines had already lost critical power. The aircraft entered a steep descent and crashed into a nearby building just 32 seconds after takeoff, despite the crew’s “MAYDAY” distress call [1].

The report does not specify how or why the fuel switches were moved during the flight. It only mentions that the aircraft's throttle control module, which houses the fuel switches, had been replaced twice, in 2019 and again in 2023 [1]. The AAIB report noted that "all applicable airworthiness directives and alert service bulletins were compiled on the aircraft as well as engines" [1].

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Boeing have privately affirmed the safety of fuel switch locks on Boeing aircraft, stating that the fuel control switch design does not warrant an Airworthiness Directive [1]. The FAA issued a Continued Airworthiness Notification on July 11 after preliminary findings from the AAIB referenced a 2018 FAA advisory about the engine fuel cutoff switches [1].

The Indian Pilots Association (ALPA India) has called for a "fair, fact-based inquiry" into the crash, rejecting any early presumption of pilot error and urging authorities to include them in the probe as observers [1]. The pilots' association pointed to the preliminary investigation report which referenced a 2018 FAA advisory "concerning the fuel control switch gates, which indicates a potential equipment malfunction" [1].

The crash of Air India Flight 171 marks the first involving a Boeing 787 Dreamliner since the aircraft first entered into service in 2011 [2]. The preliminary report has answered one key question but raised others, particularly concerning the mechanism behind the fuel switch movement.

References:
[1] https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/air-india-crash-us-faa-boeing-says-fuel-switch-locks-safe-probe-report-raised-questions-on-engine-cutoff/articleshow/122428206.cms
[2] https://www.cnn.com/2025/07/12/india/air-india-crash-questions-intl