‘Assigning blame before …’ : Pilots’ body raises red flag over Air India 171 crash report; calls it ‘premature’ | India News
NEW DELHI: The Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP) on Wednesday raised serious concerns over the preliminary findings and public commentary surrounding the crash of Air India Flight AI171, which went down in Ahmedabad shortly after takeoff en route to London.In an official statement, the FIP said, “We register our dissatisfaction with the exclusion of pilot representatives from the investigation process. We also firmly object to how the preliminary report has been interpreted and presented publicly.”The federation criticised the report for lacking comprehensive data and relying heavily on “selectively paraphrased cockpit voice recordings” that appear to imply pilot error and question the competence of the flight crew. “This approach is neither objective nor complete,” the FIP said, urging members and the public not to draw conclusions prematurely.“Assigning blame before a thorough, transparent, and data-driven investigation is both premature and irresponsible. Such speculative commentary undermines the professionalism of highly trained crew members and causes undue distress to their families and colleagues,” the statement added.The 15-page preliminary report, released a month after the crash, outlines initial findings from the accident that claimed 240 lives out of the 241 people on board. The London-bound Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner crashed into a medical hostel complex shortly after takeoff.According to the report, the incident involved mid-air engine shutdowns, cockpit confusion, and failed recovery attempts just seconds into the flight.However, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) stressed that key parts of the investigation — including wreckage analysis, post-mortem reports, and component inspections, are still under way.At this stage, the AAIB has not issued any safety recommendations for Boeing 787-8 aircraft or its GE GEnx-1B engines.Air India stated it is cooperating fully with investigators. Boeing also said it will defer to the AAIB for updates, in line with international aviation protocols under ICAO’s Annex 13.
