The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a warning about fuel switches on some Boeing planes to airlines in 2018 – more than six years before Air India Flight 171 crashed and killed 260 people
Air India was warned about wrongly installed fuel switches more than six years before the horror crash which killed 260 people, it was claimed today.
Investigators are said to be probing if the loss of power shortly after take off occurred because two fuel switches in the cockpit of Air India Flight 171 were turned off. The switches’ “locking feature” meant pilots had to lift them up before changing their position.
But a preliminary report by India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau said in December 2018 the US air regulator Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) warned airlines that fuel switches had been installed in some Boeing 737s “with the locking feature disengaged”.
“If the locking feature is disengaged, the switch can be moved between the two positions without lifting the switch during transition, and the switch would be exposed to the potential of inadvertent operation,” the FAA warned in a Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin. “Inadvertent operation of the switch could result in an unintended consequence, such as an in-flight engine shutdown.”
It recommended airlines inspect the switches, including “whether the fuel control switch can be moved between the two positions without lifting up the switch”. Air India suggested such inspections were not carried out because the FAA’s bulletin was “advisory and not mandatory”, according to the report.
The AAIB report says the fuel control switch design, including the locking feature, is similar on various Boeing airplane models including part number 4TL837-3D fitted in the 787-8 Dreamliner, the model that crashed in Ahmedabad.
It comes just days after it was claimed human error had caused the catastrophic crash, with the AAIB suggesting both pilots on the doomed Air India flight had denied cutting off the plane’s fuel switches. The report says: “In the cockpit voice recording, one of the pilots is heard asking the other why he did the cut-off. The other pilot responded that he did not do so.”
However, victims’ families have blasted the report and accused authorities of rushing to blame the pilots for the disaster. “This report is wrong. We don’t accept it,” said Ameen Siddiqui, 28, whose brother-in-law Akeel Nanabawa died alongside his wife, Hannaa Vorajee, and their daughter, Sara, four.
Akeel, who grew up in Newport, South Wales, was returning to his home in Gloucestershire with his wife and child. “It’s a cover-up,” Mr Siddiqui told The Telegraph from Surat, south of Ahmedabad. “They want to blame dead pilots who can’t defend themselves. How can the fuel switches end up turning off at a critical moment, either through pilot error or a mechanical fault?
“And if these pilots were so careless, why did the government allow them to fly at all? Air India until recently was owned by the government.” Mr Siddiqui added: “We have rejected Air India’s compensation. We will take them to court. They have to answer our questions and take responsibility.
“We have seen the videos of the passengers and pilots before the take off. Everyone was happy in the plane including the pilots. You could not find a ting of sadness, fear or anger on anyone’s face. Why will they [pilots] turn the fuel switches off deliberately. Everyone was smiling.”
However, the report was described as “the first stepping stone” by Akeel’s relatives. In a statement, they said: “Moving forwards, we require honesty, transparency, and an unwavering commitment to uncovering the full truth. We seek justice and answers, both of which are essential for us to find any sense of closure.
“We accept God’s fate, but knowing what happened will help ease our hearts and allow us to begin the long journey of healing.”
Fifty-two Britons were among 260 who died when the Boeing 787 Dreamliner crashed into a medical college after taking off from Ahmedabad a month ago. Air India Flight 171, bound for London Gatwick, crashed shortly after taking off from Ahmedabad airport on June 12. Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, a 40-year-old British national, was the sole survivor among those on board.