'260 Dead' Air India Crash Cause Revealed

[Financial News] The cause of the crash of an Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner passenger plane, which resulted in 260 deaths a month ago, has been revealed to be due to the engine fuel switch being cut off shortly after takeoff, causing the engine to almost shut down, according to an investigation report.
On the 12th (local time), according to Reuters, AFP, and Bloomberg News, the Indian Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau released a preliminary investigation report containing this information.
According to the report, about 3 minutes after the passenger plane took off from Ahmedabad Airport in Gujarat, western India, on the 12th of last month, the fuel supply switches for engines 1 and 2 were switched from 'operating' to 'cut off'.
As a result, fuel inflow to the two engines was cut off, and engine output decreased, causing the altitude of the passenger plane to rapidly drop.
At that time, the cockpit voice recording captured a pilot asking another pilot, 'Why did you cut off the fuel and cause a crash?' to which the other pilot replied, 'I didn't do that.'
The pilots turned the fuel switches back on about 10 seconds after they were turned off to reignite the two engines. However, unlike engine 1, engine 2 failed to regain sufficient output.
Eventually, a pilot sent an emergency distress signal, 'Mayday,' and seconds later, the passenger plane crashed.
The time taken from the fuel switch being turned off to the 'Mayday' signal being sent was only about 33 seconds.
Turning off the fuel switch immediately shuts down the engine, so turning off this switch during flight is only done in emergency situations like an engine fire.
American aviation safety expert John Nance told Reuters, 'No sane pilot would ever turn off this switch during flight,' especially not when the aircraft is just taking off and climbing, he explained.
An aerospace engineer and former fighter pilot told Bloomberg that it was 'really strange' that it took the pilots about 10 seconds to turn the fuel switches back on, saying, 'I wouldn't wait 10 seconds to turn the switches back on. I would turn them on immediately.'
The reason why the fuel switch was turned off or who manipulated the switch has not yet been revealed.
The captain of the crashed passenger plane is a veteran with 15,000 flight hours and is also an Air India instructor. The co-pilot has 3,400 hours of flight experience.
Investigators also stated that there is currently no evidence to take action against the aircraft manufacturer Boeing or the engine manufacturer GE Aerospace.
The Indian Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau plans to release a final report within a year after further investigation.

going@fnnews.com Choi Ga-young Reporter