Exactly a month after the deadly plane crash of Air India flight number AI171 in Ahmedabad, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has released its 15-page preliminary report. The report gives a detailed sequence of the events of the final minutes of the flight. Following the release of the report, the Reuters reported the findings of the investigation in their article. However, the headline of the article says, “Air India crash report shows pilot confusion over engine switch movement.” This headline suggests that the cause of the crash was pilots confusion over engine switch movement.
Furthermore, the BBC claimed in its news broadcast about the preliminary findings of the investigation that the investigation found no major fault in the plane. The headline of the report read, “Air India crash: Pilot turned off engine fuel – no fault in plane.” This headline implies that there was no fault in the plane that could have caused the crash. Instead, the investigation report says that it was the pilot’s fault who cut off the fuel which led to the crash.
One of the X user Flight Emergency claimed, “Preliminary reports suggests that the Air India crash last month was caused by one of the pilots flipping a switch that cut off the fuel supply to the engines Not really sure how I feel about this.” (archived link)
Preliminary reports suggests that the Air India crash last month was caused by one of the pilots flipping a switch that cut off the fuel supply to the engines
— Flight Emergency (@FlightEmergency) July 11, 2025
Not really sure how I feel about this….@AirNavRadar pic.twitter.com/AkW6tPMiaR
Also Read: No, Black Boxes Retrieved from Air India Flight Will Not Be Sent to the U.S. for Investigation
Fact Check
In our fact checker research, we reviewed the 15-page preliminary report released by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau. After reviewing this report, we found that nowhere in this report was it mentioned that the pilots had cut off the engine.
It has been revealed in the report on the 14th page that the fuel of Engine 1 and Engine 2 switched from run to cut off one after another with a time gap of 01 sec. It further says that the Engine N1 and N2 began to decrease from the take off values as the fuel supply to the engines was cut off.
This means that the fuel control switches of both the engines (N1 and N2) were turned off manually or automatically, after the first engine was turned off the second one happened just 1 second later. The fuel supply to both the engines were stopped which resulted in N1 and N2, which measure engine speed, to slow down. Both the engines started to shut down because they were not getting fuel.
However, the next para of the report, mentions about the captured cockpit voice recording of both the pilots, where one pilot noticed that the fuel was cut off and he is heard asking the other why did he cut. To which the pilot responds that he did not do so.
Page 15 of the report mentions that both engines tried to relight as it was indicated on Exhaust Gas Temperature (EGT), this typically happens when the engines is trying to restart. Engine 1 began regaining thrust as its internal core began to gain speed. However, Engine 2 had difficulties in relighting, although it had relighted but it failed to fully decelerate its core. During this time, one of the pilots made a distress call and gave international emergency signal saying “Mayday Mayday Mayday.” Air traffic controller responded but received no reply. Just seconds later, the aircraft crashed outside the airport.
It has been mentioned in this preliminary report that after take off of the flight the fuel supply of the engines was cut off due to unknown reasons. When one of the pilots noticed this he asked the other why he cut off the fuel, to which he replied he had not done so. Thereafter both the engines tried to relight in which N1 thrust successfully but N2 failed to do even after attempting. During this the distress call was made but seconds after the plane was seen crashing down. It is not mentioned anywhere in this report that there was no fault in the plane and due to the fuel cut off by the pilot to the engines the crash took place. The cause of the fuel cut off is yet to be determined and could only be revealed in further investigation.
The report also mentions about the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) advisory released on December 17, 2018, which alerted about possible issues with the fuel control switch locking features. This feature is designed to prevent RUN and CUT OFF from accidentally moving. But in Boeing 737 airplanes it was reported that many fuel control switches were installed without locking features. However, the FAA did not consider this issue a serious problem and did not take any safety measures like an Airworthiness Directive. Instead the FAA issued a Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin (SAIB) and advised that this issue be voluntarily inspected and fixed. A similar switch with part number 4TL836-3D is used in Boeing aircraft models such as the Boeing 787-8 aircraft VT-ANB. The report further states that Air India did not choose to act as per the advisory issued by SAIB.
Without locking mechanism, accidental shutdown of the engine is possible and could leads to loss of thrust.
In conclusion, the BBC and Reuters reports suggesting that the preliminary investigation found no fault with the aircraft and that the pilot cut off fuel to the engines, leading to the crash, are misleading. The actual cause of the fuel cutoff has not yet been determined.
| Claim | The preliminary report by the AAIB indicates that there was no fault with the Air India aircraft. Instead, the crash was caused by the pilot, who mistakenly cut off the fuel supply to the engines. |
| Claimed by | Reuters, BBC and others |
| Fact Check | The report mentions no such thing. The actual cause of the fuel cutoff is yet to be determined. |
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