Air India Crash Expert Suggests Pilots Deliberate Action

Photo: Reuters

The recent Air India Flight 171 crash has shocked India and the world. Now, an aviation safety expert, Captain Mohan Ranganathan, has suggested something even more shocking – that this crash may not have been an accident. He believes that a deliberate action by one of the pilots might have caused the tragedy. This news comes as investigators continue to study why the plane crashed just seconds after takeoff.

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What Happened During The Crash?

On June 12, Air India Flight 171, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, took off from Ahmedabad’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport at exactly 1:39 pm. The flight was going to London Gatwick Airport. On board were 228 passengers and 14 crew members.

But within just 32 seconds after takeoff, something went horribly wrong. Both engines of the plane suddenly lost power. The aircraft could not gain height and it fell rapidly. Sadly, it crashed into a medical hostel building only 1.2 nautical miles away from the runway. The crash killed 241 people on board and 19 people on the ground. Only one person survived. He was sitting in seat 11A and was a British citizen of Indian origin.

Why Is This Crash Making Headlines?

This tragic crash is being widely discussed because it is the first fatal accident involving a Boeing 787 Dreamliner since it started commercial flights in 2011. Now, the news has become even bigger because of what Captain Mohan Ranganathan has said.

What Did The Expert Say?

Captain Mohan Ranganathan is one of India’s most respected aviation safety experts. He believes the crash was caused deliberately. He said that someone in the cockpit manually switched off the fuel supply to both engines, which made the plane lose power and crash.

When asked if it is possible that one of the pilots switched off the fuel intentionally, he said, “Absolutely.”

Why Does He Think It Was Done On Purpose?

Captain Ranganathan explained that the fuel switches are not automatic. They are designed in such a way that they cannot be turned off accidentally. He said: “It cannot be done automatically or due to a power failure because the fuel selectors are not the sliding type. They stay in a slot, and you have to pull them out and move them up or down. The possibility of moving them to the ‘off’ position by mistake doesn’t arise. It is definitely a case of deliberate manual selection.”

What Does The Official Report Say?

India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) recently published its preliminary report. It showed that both fuel switches for engines 1 and 2 were turned from “RUN” to “CUTOFF” within one second of each other. These switches are on the central control panel of the cockpit. They are protected by a guard rail. This means someone has to put in effort to switch them off.

What Happened Inside The Cockpit?

The cockpit voice recorder has recorded the last conversation between the pilots. One pilot asks the other, “Why did you do it?”

The other pilot replies, “I did not do it.”

Captain Ranganathan says this part of the report is confusing and poorly explained. He said that cockpit audio can clearly identify whether it was the captain or co-pilot speaking based on their microphones.

Who Was Controlling The Plane During Takeoff?

During takeoff, the First Officer Clive Kunder was the pilot flying. This means he was holding the controls with both hands to lift the plane. The Captain Sumeet Sabharwal was the pilot monitoring. He was not holding the controls at that moment. Captain Ranganathan explained that: “The pilot flying has both hands on the control column during rotation. They are focused on lifting the plane and setting autopilot. The pilot monitoring is the only one with free hands.”

Did The Pilot Have A Medical History?

Captain Ranganathan has also raised concerns about the medical history of the captain. He said some serving Air India pilots told him that the captain had been on extended medical leave before the crash.

He believes that the investigation should check the psychological and mental health of the pilots over the past months, not just days before the crash. The AAIB report said both pilots were medically fit. But Captain Ranganathan feels more needs to be checked.

Have Such Incidents Happened Before?

Sadly, yes. There have been a few pilot-induced crashes in aviation history. For example:

• Germanwings Flight 9525 (2015): The co-pilot crashed the plane into the French Alps, killing all 150 people.

• EgyptAir Flight 990 (1999): Suspected pilot suicide.

• SilkAir Flight 185 (1997): Pilot suicide confirmed by the NTSB.

• China Eastern Airlines Flight 5735 (2022): Suspected deliberate crash.

• Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 (2014): Many believe the pilot may have diverted it deliberately before it disappeared.

Captain Ranganathan said: “When someone is under stress or depression, it can lead to such actions. I’m not saying this without looking at past cases.”

Why Is Mental Health Important For Pilots?

Captain Ranganathan blamed airlines and aviation authorities for not checking pilots’ mental health properly. He said that Indian airlines do not maintain a psychiatric profile of pilots during medical tests. He warned:“People treat pilots like machines, not humans. They ignore how stress and fatigue affect them. We are now paying the price for that ignorance.”

What Did The Aviation Minister Say?

Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu has asked people not to jump to conclusions. He said that the preliminary report has been released but the final report will give the full details. He praised Indian pilots and said:“We have the most wonderful pilots and crew in the world. They are the backbone of civil aviation. We care for their well-being. Let us wait for the final report.”

This tragic crash has raised many serious questions. Was it really an accident or was it a deliberate action? The final investigation report will give a clearer answer. But for now, the aviation industry must learn the lesson that pilots are humans, not machines, and their mental health is just as important as their flying skills.