A cut in the fuel supply to both of the engines caused the previous month’s Air India crash in Ahmedabad. The incident killed 260 travellers, according to the preliminary report.
A shift in fuel control switches three seconds after the London-bound plane, a Boeing 787-8 aircraft, became airborne, resulting in a loss of engine thrust. Moments before the plane crash, both engines shut down. The fuel cut-off switches of both engines shifted from RUN to CUTOFF position one after another with a time gap of 1 sec. Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau submitted the report late on Friday (July 11, 2025).
The plane crash occurred on June 12, 2025, at 1.38.42 pm, and it was incidentally three seconds after the plane took off.
The report does not mention whether the switches were deliberate or inadvertent. The report says that at the time when the switches shifted, the cockpit voice recording revealed that one pilot was heard asking the other why he had cut off. Another pilot replied that he did not do so. The report does not provide the transcript of the cockpit voice recording of the pilot.
Air India crash update says that the pilot in command, Captain Sumeet Sabharwal, was monitoring the plane. The First Officer Clive Kundar was flying the craft. The former pilot has 8,200 hours of flying experience, while the other has 1100 hours of flying experience.
Thirty seconds later, one of the pilots shouted “Mayday Mayday Mayday”. This is a distress signal used to indicate a life-threatening emergency in a plane. The air traffic control officer inquired about the call sign to recognise the flight, but he received no response. Within seconds, he found the aircraft was crashing outside the airport boundary.
On the 787, the fuel control switches lie between the two pilots’ seats. They are protected on the sides by a metal bar, and they have a locking mechanism. The pilot of the plane uses the locking mechanism to prevent accidental cutoff.
The Airport footage reveals that the Ram Air Turbine, which is an emergency power source on any aircraft, is positioned during the aircraft’s initial climb following airborne. The aircraft started to lose altitude before crossing the airport perimeter wall, the report reveals.
The CNN safety analyst, David Soucle, said that the fuel switches were designed to be intentionally moved. He added that cases in which all fuel switches are turned off are extremely rare.
Soucle said on Friday that throughout the years, the fuel switches have been improved so that they can not be accidentally moved, and also, they are not automatic. He added that the switches do not move themselves in any manner.
The airbrone weight for the plane was found within the normal range, and there were no dangerous goods on the aircraft. Investigators found that the flaps on the wings of the aircraft were set in a 5-degree position. The position is also correct for taking off. The landing gear lever was in the down position.
Air India acknowledged that they received the report and said they will further cooperate with the authorities in the investigation.