Investigators have failed to rule out the possibility of sabotage being behind the crash of an Air India flight earlier this month, India’s aviation minister has said.
The crash in Ahmedabad, which saw a Boeing 787 Dreamliner en route to London crash into a residential block moments after take-off, happened around 2pm local time on June 12 and resulted in the death of 274 people.
The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) confirmed that the agency will investigate the aircraft’s black box.
The Minister of State for Civil Aviation, Murlidhar Mohol, also said that the flight recorders “will not go anywhere” for the assessment, remaining in India.
Investigators still failed to rule out the possibility of sabotage being behind the Air India crash in Ahmedabad earlier this month
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He said: “It is in AAIB's custody and there is no need to send it outside. We will do the entire investigation."
Mohol told Indian broadcaster NDTV: "It (plane crash) was an unfortunate incident. The AAIB has begun a full investigation into it... It is being probed from all angles, including any possible sabotage.”
"The CCTV footage are being reviewed and all angles are being assessed... several agencies are working on it."
He confirmed a report is set to be released in three months, with data extraction from the aircraft’s black boxes already beginning on June 24, according to the ministry.
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Among the victims were 52 British nationals
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It follows growing criticism from safety experts over delays in analysing black box data and a lack of transparency in the investigation, with now dismissed reports that specialist analysis would take place in the US.
The London-bound flight crashed within one minute after take-off, killing all 242 passengers and crew except for one survivor, London resident Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, who escaped the burning wreckage.
Among the victims were 52 British nationals.
The incident marks the first fatal accident involving a Boeing Dreamliner since the aircraft entered service.
The incident marks the first fatal accident involving a Boeing Dreamliner since the aircraft entered service
REUTERS
Among the wreckage, responders recovered the crash-protected memory unit from the front recorder, and its data has been downloaded.
The ministry added that analysis of both the cockpit voice recorder (CVR) and flight data recorder (FDR) are currently in progress.
Possible causes for the devastating crash include dual engine failure due to fuel contamination, technical faults, or sabotage.
Other theories under review include improper flap or landing gear configuration, maintenance errors, or inadvertent crew actions.
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