Aviation analyst and former pilot, Steve Schreiber, has just changed his theory on the recent Air India plane crash after reviewing new, clearer video footage, now suggesting a catastrophic dual-engine failure brought down the Boeing 787 Dreamliner shortly after take-off from Ahmedabad in India. The London-bound flight tragically crashed into a residential area, killing 241 passengers and 38 people on the ground.
Only one person on board is known to have survived, Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, who was reportedly sitting by the emergency exit in seat 11A. At first, Schreiber, also known online as ‘Captain Steve’, believed pilot error, possibly a premature retraction of landing gear, might have contributed to the crash. However, the expert has now changed his theory after the release of the new video.
Clearer footage has shifted his view, as he said to have noticed a ‘critical visual detail’ under the aircraft’s right wing, the deployment of the Ram Air Turbine (RAT), a small emergency device that only activates during major in-flight system failures.
In a YouTube video released on June 15, Captain Steve, Schreiber, said: “Some new video has emerged has changed my analysis of this accident in particular.”
In the caption of the video he also wrote: “In this video, we clearly see the Ram Air Turbine (RAT) deployed—something that only happens in the event of significant power loss. This changes everything.”
He explained that many aeroplanes have the RAT, and it is located on the right side of the plane, just behind the wing, and it “looks like a little Evinrude motor, it’s a little two-bladed prop.”
He added: “The purpose is to provide electrical and hydraulic pressure for the aircraft on an extreme emergency.”
He said it deploys automatically in three key scenarios: in case of a massive electrical failure, hydraulic failure, or a dual engine failure.
While typically intended for use at higher altitudes, Schreiber said its appearance so soon after takeoff strongly suggests a dual engine failure, the most devastating possibility for a commercial aircraft at low altitude.
He said that the RAT is not designed to come out at 400 or 500 feet, which suggests that something serious happened almost instantly after takeoff.
He also cited the distinctive high-pitched sound captured in the footage, one consistent with a RAT spinning at high speeds. The Boeing 787 issued a mayday call shortly before impact, with some reports confirming the pilot cited an ‘engine failure’ in his distress transmission.
Schreiber stressed that further investigation is needed, but argued the presence of the RAT provides the ‘strongest evidence’ yet of a dual engine failure.