The Boeing 787 Dreamliner, operating as Flight AI171 from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick, crashed shortly after takeoff on June 12 last year into a medical college hostel in the residential area of Meghani Nagar, located near Ahmedabad's international airport. The aircraft had been airborne for only moments before it plunged back to the ground, resulting in massive destruction and loss of life.
According to flight-tracking data, the aircraft's final signal was received at 1:38 p.m. local time, only seconds after departure. The aircraft had reached an altitude of 625 feet before crashing outside the airport perimeter. Moments before communications were lost, the crew issued a mayday distress call to air traffic control.
Of the 242 people aboard the aircraft, 241 were killed. The passengers included 169 Indian nationals and 52 British nationals. Nineteen people on the ground also lost their lives, bringing the total death toll to 260. An additional 67 people near the crash site sustained injuries.
The sole survivor was British national Vishwash Kumar Ramesh. His brother was among those killed in the disaster. According to comments made by his representative, Sanjiv Patel, to The Guardian on Thursday, Air India paid Ramesh £21,500, equivalent to approximately ,800, to support his wife and five-year-old son. It remains unclear whether similar payments have been made to other affected families.
The disaster marked the world's first fatal crash involving a Boeing 787 Dreamliner since the aircraft entered commercial service in 2011.
India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau released a 15-page preliminary report one month after the crash, in accordance with international aviation regulations. The report revealed that fuel supply to the aircraft's engines had been cut off moments before impact, raising serious questions regarding possible pilot error.
The report also included a brief cockpit exchange between the captain and the first officer concerning the interruption of fuel supply. The disclosure triggered widespread speculation, including theories suggesting pilot suicide.
However, the preliminary findings faced significant criticism. Investigators did not determine why the fuel switches were moved to the off position, leaving open the possibility of either human action or a technical malfunction. The report also did not issue any safety recommendations to Boeing or engine manufacturer GE Aerospace, indicating that investigators had not identified any technical defects at that stage.
The crash occurred during a critical period for Air India as the airline pursued a major post-privatisation transformation. That effort has been challenged by supply-chain disruptions, restrictions on Indian carriers imposed by Pakistan's airspace closure, and more recently by regional instability linked to the conflict involving the United States, Israel, and Iran.
Under international aviation investigation standards, authorities are expected to issue a final report within one year whenever possible. If an investigation cannot be completed within that period, an interim statement must be released on each anniversary of the accident.
Indian authorities are now expected to publish an interim report rather than a final determination. The anticipated delay has become another source of frustration for victims' relatives, many of whom hoped that the first anniversary would bring definitive conclusions.
Media reports citing unnamed sources indicate that investigators require additional time to complete analysis of the aircraft's engines. According to Reuters, investigators conducted engine testing in April and travelled to France last month to examine the engine management unit as part of the ongoing inquiry. Bloomberg has also reported that a final report could be released within approximately three months after examinations of the engines, which were sent to the United States for detailed analysis, are completed.
The Federation of Indian Pilots has strongly opposed the release of another interim report. The organisation has urged investigators to obtain additional technical information from Boeing and Air India to challenge what it describes as an unproven pilot suicide theory.
Speaking during a news conference in Ahmedabad ahead of the anniversary, Federation of Indian Pilots President Charanvir Randhawa warned that releasing only an interim report could fuel further confusion and speculation. The organisation has formally requested that both the Indian government and the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau refrain from issuing such a report.
Questions surrounding pilot actions have remained central to the investigation. Reuters previously reported that United States officials reviewing cockpit voice recordings believed the captain may have deliberately interrupted fuel flow to the engines. Nevertheless, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau maintained that it was premature to reach definitive conclusions.
Adding to the controversy, the captain's father has approached India's Supreme Court seeking an independent investigation that examines alternative causes beyond deliberate pilot action. Similar suspicions emerged in several past aviation disasters, including Germanwings Flight 9525, which crashed into the French Alps in 2015, killing all 150 people on board after deliberate action by a pilot was ultimately confirmed.
As families mark one year since the catastrophe, the absence of definitive findings continues to deepen grief and uncertainty. With investigators still examining crucial technical evidence, the tragedy remains one of the most closely scrutinised aviation disasters in modern history, and the search for answers remains far from over.
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