A probe into the Air India flight tragedy is being conducted by officials to examine the medical records of the flight’s Captain.
There have been claims that the pilot suffered from mental health problems, which is a new line of enquiry for those seeking answers on the crash. The FAA and Boeing have now issued notifications saying the fuel switch locks on Boeing planes are safe after a preliminary report into the crash found that the plane’s fuel was cut off during take-off.
The flight, which was headed for London Gatwick, was being flown by Captain Sumeet Sabharwal. The pilot was just months away from retirement.
An aviation expert in India told The Telegraph that the captain reportedly suffered from mental health issues and depression.
Captain Mohan Ranganathan, a former instructor pilot of Boeing 737, said: “I have heard from several Air India pilots who told me he had some depression and mental health issues. He had taken time off from flying in the last three to four years.”
However, the captain must have been medically cleared by the company doctors before flying, says Mr Ranganathan.
The Airline Pilots’ Association of India (APAI) rejected the “tone and direction” of the inquiry and said it came without sufficient evidence.
However, India’s Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu said that investigators probed in a “mature, transparent” way, reports The Sun.
The report found that there was a dual-engine shutdown with fuel cutoff switches moving from “RUN” to “CUTOFF”.
Changing the switches to cut off almost immediately cuts the fuel supply to the engines. It is most often used to turn engines off once a plane has arrived at its airport gate and in certain emergency situations, such as an engine fire.
It also found that an engine relight was attempted as fuel switches were found returned to “RUN” at the crash site.
Analysis of the cockpit voice recording revealed that one of the pilots asked: “Why did you cut off?” To which the other pilot replied: “I didn’t.”
An Air India spokesperson says: “Air India stands in solidarity with the families and those affected by the AI171 accident.
“We continue to mourn the loss and are fully committed to providing support during this difficult time.
“Air India is working closely with stakeholders, including regulators. We continue to fully co-operate with the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) and other authorities as their investigation progresses.
“Given the active nature of the investigation, we are unable to comment on specific details and refer all such inquiries to the AAIB.”
Further investigations into the cause of the crash continue.
