Investigators probing the Air India flight crash in Ahmedabad have concluded that the catastrophe was not attributable to a technical defect however was the results of an “intentional act”, Italian each day Corriere della Sera reported, citing two sources accustomed to the most recent discussions between New Delhi and Washington. Nevertheless, it could be untimely to conclude something earlier than an official report by the DGCA is launched.
In line with the report, Indian investigators have decided that the June 12, 2025, crash after gas cut-off to the engine was not triggered by a mechanical failure however by deliberate motion, and officers are actually making ready to draft their ultimate report. US specialists helping within the probe have described the findings as “a breakthrough”, the newspaper added.
The Boeing 787 Dreamliner, operated by Air India, had taken off from Ahmedabad airport when it crashed seconds later. A complete of 260 individuals have been killed within the catastrophe, together with passengers and people inside a medical college students’ hostel on which the plane fell. Just one passenger survived.
A preliminary report launched in July 2025 by India’s Plane Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) talked about the ultimate cockpit trade concerning one pilot allegedly switching off the gas management. Within the cockpit voice recording, one pilot was heard asking, “Why did you chop off (the gas)?” The opposite replied, “I didn’t achieve this.”
The Italian newspaper reiterated this account, claiming investigators now imagine that one of many pilots switched off the engine gas management switches, inflicting the plane to lose energy and plunge to the bottom. Captain Sumeet Sabharwal was the pilot-in-command, whereas First Officer Clive Kunder was the co-pilot.
The report additional wrote, “Duties stay unclear: the primary suspect is Captain Sumeet Sabharwal, who, as emerged a month after the crash, suffered from melancholy.”
Following the AAIB’s preliminary findings — which additionally sparked protests from pilots’ associations — Sabharwal’s father rejected the allegations, demanded a recent probe, and dismissed hypothesis about his son’s psychological well being. He refuted recommendations that non-public points, together with reviews of a divorce, had led to nervousness or melancholy.
In line with Corriere della Sera, the ultimate investigation report can be anticipated to incorporate suggestions on steady psychological analysis and psychological well being monitoring of pilots.
Within the weeks after the crash, a number of theories have been floated, starting from technical malfunction to human error. Over time, investigators narrowed their focus to the gas management switches within the cockpit.
The preliminary technical evaluation, primarily based on black field knowledge, dominated out mechanical failure and as a substitute pointed to the handbook motion of the switches that regulate engine ignition and shutdown. On the time of the crash, each engines have been discovered to have been switched off.
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