A preliminary report into the Air India crash that killed at least 270 people revealed the fuel was cut off to both engines of the plane seconds after takeoff.
According to a report by India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau, the plane’s fuel cutoff switches for both engines went from the "RUN" position to the "CUTOFF" position just after taking off.
“In the cockpit voice recording, one of the pilots is heard asking the other why did he cutoff,” the report said, according to The New York Times.
“The other pilot responded that he did not do so," it added.
The outlet noted the focus on the fuel switches appeared to rule out design flaws or mechanical failure and prompted questions about the pilots' actions.
Air India Flight 171, a Boeing 787 Dreamliner traveling from Ahmedabad to London, crashed shortly after takeoff and killed all but one of the 242 people aboard.
Air India pilots may have made fatal error before crash that killed more than 270 people, probe reveals https://t.co/IS7usNdaCJ pic.twitter.com/uzqo9FBNCw
— New York Post (@nypost) July 11, 2025
More from The New York Times:
The plane rammed into the dining hall of a medical college before exploding in flames. Altogether, more than 270 people were killed, including dozens on the ground, officials said. It was India’s worst aviation disaster since 1996.
The flight was captained by Sumeet Sabharwal, with over 10,000 hours of experience flying large aircraft, and First Officer Clive Kunder, who brought 3,400 hours of flying experience, Air India said. That is more experience than officials attributed to the pilots last month, when they estimated a combined experience of about 10,000 hours.
India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau, the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board and Boeing have been trying to determine what caused Flight 171 to crash. The cockpit voice recorder and the flight data recorder, usually referred to as the black boxes, were found from the debris.
While there was initial concern that the devices might have been damaged in the extreme heat of the fire, investigating teams have downloaded information contained in the boxes for study.
Video filmed by residents in nearby homes, as well as CCTV footage, showed the plane struggling to gain lift immediately after taking off. A New York Times analysis of photos and videos suggested that the plane may have experienced a catastrophic loss of hydraulic, electrical or engine power.
“The Engine N1 and N2 began to decrease from their take-off values as the fuel supply to the engines was cut off,” the report said, according to the New York Post.
The Air India crash probe is focusing on the pilots’ actions and hasn't pointed to a problem with Boeing's 787 Dreamliner https://t.co/bLSaNx6E4Q
— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) July 10, 2025
CNN provided further details:
Shortly after, the switches were reversed back to where they should have been, and the engines were in the process of powering back up when the crash happened.
ADVERTISEMENTFuel was cutoff to the engines, according to the report.
On the 787, the fuel cutoff switches are located between the two pilots’ seats immediately behind the planes throttles levers. They are protected on the sides by a metal bar and have a locking mechanism designed to prevent accidental cutoff.
Airport footage shows the Ram Air Turbine, an emergency power source on an aircraft, deployed during the plane’s initial climb after take-off, the report said. The plane started to lose altitude before crossing the airport perimeter wall.
Investigators also noted settings on equipment found in the wreckage was normal for takeoff. The plane’s fuel was tested and found to be of satisfactory quality and no significant bird activity is observed in the vicinity of the flight path, according to the report.
“When fuel control switches are moved from CUTOFF to RUN while the aircraft is inflight, each engines full authority dual engine control automatically manages a relight and thrust recovery sequence of ignition and fuel introduction,” the report states.
Seconds after the engines attempted to relight, one pilot called out, “MAYDAY MAYDAY MAYDAY.” The controller called out for the plane’s callsign, but didn’t get a response and watched the plane crash in the distance.
