NEW DELHI (Reuters) -The sudden movement of engine fuel switches has taken centre stage in the investigation of the Air India Boeing Dreamliner crash that killed 260 people in June, the world’s worst aviation disaster in a decade.
The crash poses a fresh challenge for Air India, which has long sought to become a “world-class airline”, and Boeing, which is working to restore public trust after a series of safety and production crises.
THE INVESTIGATION
** A 15-page preliminary report revealed some of what happened in the cockpit and depicted confusion shortly before the jet crashed, after the switches flipped almost simultaneously. It didn’t say how that happened.
** One pilot was heard on the cockpit voice recorder asking the other why he cut off the fuel. “The other pilot responded that he did not do so”.
** Around 20 seconds later, one of the pilots gave a “MAYDAY” call.
** The two pilots were Captain Sumeet Sabharwal and First Officer Clive Kunder. They had a total flying experience of 15,638 hours and 3,403 hours, respectively.
** In one internal memo, Air India CEO Campbell Wilson said the report raises additional questions about the incident, urging “everyone to avoid drawing any premature conclusions.”
** The final report into the crash could take another year.
** The father of one of the 260 people killed in the Air India crash called for punishment of those responsible after the release of a preliminary report about the disaster.
THE FALLOUT
** The focus is on engine fuel switches that regulate fuel flow into a plane’s engines. They are used by pilots to start or shut down engines on the ground or to manually shut down or restart engines if an engine failure occurs during a flight.
** The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and Boeing have privately issued notifications that the fuel switch locks on Boeing planes are safe.
** But that has not stopped India and South Korea from ordering their airlines to check fuel switches on several Boeing models. Singapore Airlines also said it was making precautionary checks. Air India hasn’t found any problems yet.
** Flying anxiety has peaked in India. Some travellers are becoming more choosy in selecting their airline and aircraft.
CCTV FOOTAGE, TRAGIC TALES
** Air India and its low-cost unit have come under intense scrutiny since the crash from the Indian aviation regulator due to maintenance lapses.
* There were 169 Indians, 53 Britons, 7 Portuguese, and one Canadian among the passengers on board. Twelve crew members were also on the plane.
* The only survivor was Viswashkumar Ramesh, 40, who was in seat 11A, near the emergency exit.
* The most chilling footage of the crash was a 59-second clip that showed the takeoff and crash into a huge fireball.
* The plane hit a college hostel building. Wheels and other parts of the aircraft were embedded in the walls. Nineteen people on the ground were killed.
* Lawrence Christian, a 30-year-old working in Britain, had flown to India to bury his father, but just two weeks later, his family will have to bury him.
* Dozens of anxious family members waited for days to collect bodies of loved ones as doctors work to gather dental samples and do DNA profiling to identify bodies badly charred.
(Compiled by Abhijith Ganapavaram; Editing by Aditya Kalra and Kim Coghill)
