Media Reports On Air India Crash Speculative & Premature, Says US Transport Safety Body

Last Updated:July 19, 2025, 09:10 IST

NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy said the report was preliminary, echoing India's stance of calling out foreign media outlets for 'irresponsible' reporting on the Air India flight crash

The Air India plane crashed in Ahmedabad on June 12. (File image: PTI)

The United States Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Chair Jennifer Homendy has called the recent media reports on the Air India Boeing Dreamliner crash “premature and speculative", saying “investigations of this magnitude take time".

Last week, a preliminary investigation released by India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau revealed confusion in the cockpit shortly before the June 12 crash that killed 260 people, and raised fresh questions over the position of the critical engine fuel cut-off switches.

“Recent media reports on the Air India 171 crash are premature and speculative. India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau just released its preliminary report. Investigations of this magnitude take time. We fully support the AAIB’s public appeal, which was released Thursday, and will continue to support its ongoing investigation. All investigative questions should be addressed to the AAIB."

India has called out foreign media outlets for “irresponsible" reporting on the Air India flight crash following the release of the initial report, and appealed to them to wait until the investigation is complete.

In a statement, the AAIB said some international media outlets were drawing premature conclusions through selective and unverified reporting. “Such actions are deemed irresponsible while the investigation is still ongoing," it said.

Calling it “essential" to respect the sensitivity of the loss faced by families of victims, AAIB said it is too early to reach to any definitive conclusions.

What Did The AAIB Report Say?

The preliminary probe report has revealed that both switches feeding fuel to the two engines of Air India flight 171 were cut off, followed by pilot confusion before the plane crashed in Ahmedabad, seconds after taking off. It said one pilot asked the other why he had shut off the fuel to which the latter responded that he hadn’t taken the action.

“The aircraft achieved the maximum recorded airspeed of 180 Knots IAS at about 08:08:42 UTC and immediately thereafter, the Engine 1 and Engine 2 fuel cutoff switches transitioned from RUN to CUTOFF position one after another with a time gap of 01 sec," the report said.

At the time the aircraft took off, the co-pilot was flying the plane, while the captain was monitoring.

As per the report, the engines N1 and N2 began to decrease from their take-off values as the fuel supply to the engines was cut off. “In the cockpit voice recording, one of the pilots is heard asking the other why did he cutoff. The other pilot responded that he did not do so," it said.

Pilots At Receiving End

Since the report went public, several foreign media outlets have laid the blame for the aviation disaster at the door of the pilots.

A Wall Street Journal (WSJ) report claimed that a senior pilot may have accidentally cut off fuel supply to both engines, leading to the crash. Yet another report by WSJ clearly blamed the senior pilot, saying the cockpit recording between the two pilots indicates that the flow of fuel to the plane’s engines was cut by the captain of the flight.

After the report went public, several foreign media outlets blamed the Air India pilots for the crash that killed 260 people on June 12.

A Wall Street Journal (WSJ) report claimed that a senior pilot may have accidentally cut off fuel supply to both engines, leading to the crash. Another report by the WSJ now puts the blame on the senior pilot. It says the cockpit recording between the two pilots indicates that the flow of fuel to the plane’s engines was cut by the captain of the flight.

Air India CEO and MD Campbell Wilson has said AAIB’s preliminary report on the Ahmedabad plane crash last month found no mechanical or maintenance issues with the aircraft or engines, and that all mandatory maintenance tasks had been completed, urging everyone to avoid drawing premature conclusions as the investigation is far from over.

United States of America (USA)

News world Media Reports On Air India Crash Speculative & Premature, Says US Transport Safety Body