Air India crash report likely to be ready in October, say investigators
The crash killed 260 people, including 241 on board, with only one passenger surviving.
Investigators indicate that the report on the Air India crash may be completed by October. The Air India flight bound for London tragically crashed shortly after departing from Ahmedabad airport last June. The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has informed the Supreme Court through an affidavit submitted on Tuesday that it is currently in the "analysis phase" of the investigation, which is anticipated to conclude in approximately six weeks.
The affidavit did not specify when the report would be released to the public or provide any findings related to the incident. The crash occurred on June 12, 2025, when an Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner, shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad airport in western India, went down just 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) from the airport, striking a building used for housing doctors at a medical college and resulting in an explosion.
In total, 260 individuals lost their lives in the crash, including 241 on the aircraft and 19 on the ground, with only one passenger, Viswashkumar Ramesh from Leicester, surviving. The AAIB initiated an investigation immediately following the incident and published a preliminary report a month later.
On the first anniversary of the crash, the AAIB reported "significant progress" in analyzing the evidence but provided limited additional information. In the recent affidavit, the AAIB noted that it had completed 49 of the 66 required steps for investigating serious aircraft accidents. This included examining the crash site and wreckage, gathering evidence such as flight recorders, and reviewing pertinent records, including the medical and training histories of the crew members.
The affidavit mentioned that a review of organizational culture, human factors, and safety practices was conducted, along with a psychological autopsy and evaluation, with the psychologist's final report now received. A psychological autopsy implies that investigators consulted an aviation psychologist to evaluate the psychological profiles of one or more crew members as part of the broader human factors investigation.
Additionally, the AAIB stated that it had prepared a transcript of the cockpit voice recorder but did not disclose further details. The preliminary report released last July indicated that just moments after takeoff, fuel-control switches unexpectedly shifted to the "cut-off" position, depriving the engines of fuel and resulting in a complete power failure. Audio recordings from the cockpit captured one pilot questioning the other about the action, to which the other responded that he had not done it. The report did not specify which pilot made either remark.
The uncertainty in the report has led to speculation regarding the pilots' involvement in the crash, with some international media suggesting that investigators were focusing on the senior pilot, Capt Sumeet Sabharwal. This coverage sparked a strong reaction from Sabharwal's father, pilots' associations in India, and the AAIB, which condemned the reporting. In the affidavit, submitted in response to a lawsuit from Sabharwal's father seeking an independent investigation, the AAIB stated that "media speculation and narrative attributing blameworthiness to the pilots have, regrettably, caused some witnesses to become restrictive and non-responsive."