Air India Crash: Pilot Sumeet’s Father Claims Investigators Made Insinuation During Condolence Visit
- India’s aviation watchdog is facing scrutiny after the grieving father of a crashed Air India captain alleged investigators implied his son deliberately cut fuel to the engines
- Pushkar Raj Sabharwal, 91, claimed AAIB officials made the insinuation during a condolence visit, sparking outrage from the pilots’ federation
- The June crash of Air India flight 171 killed 260 people and has prompted calls for an independent investigation into the tragedy
The father of Captain Sumeet Sabharwal, who was at the helm of the ill-fated Air India flight 171, has accused officials from India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) of implying his son deliberately cut fuel to the plane’s engines moments after takeoff.
In an email obtained by Reuters, Pushkar Raj Sabharwal, 91, said the officials visited his Mumbai residence on 30 August “under the pretext of offering condolences” but made troubling insinuations about his son’s actions.
Source: UGC
“During this interaction … they went beyond their mandate – speaking in innuendos and insinuating, on the basis of selective CVR (cockpit voice recorder) interpretation and a so-called ‘layered voice analysis’, that my son had moved the fuel control switches from RUN to CUTOFF after take-off,” Sabharwal wrote in a message dated 17 September to the Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP).
Preliminary report raises questions
The crash of Air India flight 171 in June, shortly after departing from Ahmedabad, claimed the lives of 241 of the 242 passengers aboard the Boeing Dreamliner, along with 19 individuals on the ground.
A preliminary AAIB report released in July indicated that the aircraft’s fuel engine switches had flipped from run to cutoff almost simultaneously after takeoff.
The cockpit voice recorder captured one pilot asking the other why the fuel had been cut off. “The other pilot responded that he did not do so,” the report stated, without identifying the speakers.
A source briefed on a U.S. assessment of the evidence told Reuters that the recording supported the view that Captain Sabharwal had moved the switches, prompting the first officer, who was flying the aircraft, to question the action and request restoration of fuel flow.
Federation of Indian pilots condemns AAIB conduct
The Federation of Indian Pilots strongly criticised the AAIB’s visit to Sabharwal’s home, stating that it had raised the issue with the civil aviation minister.
“In any court of law the judge or the prosecutor does not go to the house of victims and cross question individuals,” said Captain C.S. Randhawa, president of the FIP, in a text message to Reuters.
Pushkar Raj Sabharwal, a former official with India’s aviation safety regulator, appealed to the pilots’ federation for support in ensuring a fair and transparent investigation.
“My son’s dignity and the integrity of due process must be preserved,” he wrote, describing the investigators’ alleged conduct as “procedurally improper and professionally indefensible.”
Call for independent investigation into air India crash
A day before the AAIB visit, Sabharwal had written to India’s civil aviation ministry requesting a separate government-led investigation.
In his letter dated 29 August, he criticised what he described as “selective” disclosures by investigators, which he said had fuelled speculation and caused him personal anguish. He argued that an additional probe would be vital in “safeguarding the truth and ensuring the safety of future passengers.”
India’s Supreme Court this week asked the government to respond to a separate public interest litigation calling for an independent inquiry into the crash.
Meanwhile, the AAIB, civil aviation ministry, and Air India have not responded to Reuters’ requests for comment. A Reuters reporter seeking further clarification was denied access to Sabharwal’s residence by building security.
In July, the AAIB had urged the public and media to avoid spreading “premature narratives” that could compromise the integrity of the ongoing investigation.
Source: Getty Images
Pilot who worked with late Captain Sumeet speaks
Legit.ng earlier reported that Manmath Routray has paid tribute to Captain Sumeet Sabharwal, who tragically lost his life in the Air India crash in Ahmedabad on June 12.
The former Air India pilot, who trained under Sabharwal, noted that he was a highly skilled and composed individual who was respected by everyone.
Routray, who was a former Air India commercial pilot and BJD member, shared his memories of Sabharwal following the Air India plane crash, per Times of India.
Source: Legit.ng
