New Delhi: Release of the preliminary probe report on the June 12 Air India Boeing Dreamliner crash by the Airline Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has sparked a major debate on the role of the two pilots of the ill-fated flight.
Despite civil aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu’s appeal to people not to jump to conclusions as the report is only a preliminary one, some aviation experts – former pilots themselves – have openly started pointing fingers at the cockpit crew, going so far as to question the mental health condition of 56-year-old Captain Sumeet Sabharwal, who had 15,638 hours of flying under his belt.
While Captain Sabharwal was the Pilot Monitoring (PM), his co-pilot 32-year-old Clive Kunder was the Pilot Flying (PF). Kunder had 3,403 hours of total experience.
The Pilots’ Association of India (PAI) has, meanwhile, refused to accept the findings and raised strong objections over the direction of the investigation, alleging that it appears to be “presuming the guilt of pilots”. So has the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) India.
“We feel that the investigation is being driven in a direction presuming the guilt of pilots, and we strongly object to this line of thought,” Captain Sam Thomas, president, ALPA India, said in an official statement.
The association expressed surprise at the “secrecy surrounding these investigations” and questioned the qualifications of those involved. “We are reiterating the fact that suitably qualified personnel are not taken on board for these crucial investigations,” the statement read.
ALPA India has also flagged a Wall Street Journal report published on July 10 that referred to the inadvertent movement of fuel control switches — a critical issue highlighted in the AAIB preliminary report.
“How did this information reach them?” the statement asked, referring to the article.
The AAIB’s preliminary findings revealed that both fuel control switches of the Boeing 787 aircraft were flipped from ‘Run’ to ‘Cutoff’ within seconds of take-off from Ahmedabad, resulting in engine shutdown. The cockpit voice recorder apparently captured a pilot asking: “Why did you cut off the fuel?” and the other responded, “I did not do so.”
However, the AAIB report does not specify whether the switches were moved inadvertently or deliberately. The report also mentions a potential malfunction related to the serviceability of the fuel control switch gates.
The PAI has called the report “unsigned” and leaked to the media without attribution. “We are surprised that a document so crucial has been given to the media without any responsible person signing it,” it said in a statement.
PAI has also appealed to the authorities to allow pilot representatives to participate in the investigation process, even in the capacity of observers, to ensure transparency. “We once again request the powers that be to include us even in the capacity of observers, to provide the requisite transparency in the investigations,” the statement concluded.
The air crash in Ahmedabad – one of the worst in India’s aviation history – killed 260 people on board and on the ground.