Reports indicate the father of a deceased Air India flight captain has stated that investigators from the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) suggested his son deliberately cut the aircraft’s fuel supply post-takeoff. This information emerged from correspondence obtained by Reuters.
The AAIB’s preliminary investigation report noted that the plane’s fuel engine switches had almost simultaneously flipped from run to cut-off shortly after departing the runway. The report also detailed a cockpit voice recording where one pilot was heard asking the other why he had cut off the fuel, to which the other pilot responded that he did not do so, without identifying the speakers.
Furthermore, a source briefed on U.S. officials’ initial assessment of evidence told Reuters that the cockpit recording of dialogue between the two pilots supported the view that Captain Sabharwal had cut the flow of fuel to the engines. The AAIB, the Civil Aviation Ministry, and Air India did not provide responses to Reuters’ queries regarding these developments.
Source: www.thehindu.com