AI crash: US transport safety body hits ‘premature and speculative’ reporting

New Delhi: The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP) have criticised “speculative” media coverage of the preliminary findings into the Air India 171 crash incident.

While NTSB Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy has said the recent media reports on the crash are “premature and speculative”, the FIP served a legal notice to The Wall Street Journal and Reuters over their “baseless and defamatory” coverage of the Ahmedabad crash.

“Recent media reports on the Air India 171 crash are premature and speculative. India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) just released its preliminary report. Investigations of this magnitude take time,” Homendy said in a statement posted on X.

She also said that the NTSB fully supports AAIB’s public appeal and will continue to support its ongoing investigation.

“All investigative questions should be addressed to the AAIB,” she said in the post on Saturday. FIP President, Captain CS Randhawa, has reportedly said that they have initiated legal action through a formal notice against both media organisations.

“We strongly condemn it, and we’ve also issued legal notices to The Wall Street Journal and Reuters. We have clearly said that how can you jump to these conclusions which are not part of the preliminary report of the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB)? How can you blame the pilots? So we have asked for an explanation and have asked that you give a statement to the press,” media reports quoted Randhawa as saying on Saturday.

On June 12, Air India’s Boeing 787-8 aircraft en route from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick crashed into a building soon after takeoff, killing 260 people, including 19 people on the ground. Out of the 242 people onboard, one passenger survived.

On July 12, the AAIB released its preliminary report into the fatal crash. The AAIB’s preliminary report said the aircraft’s fuel switches were cut off within a gap of one second immediately after takeoff and caused confusion in the cockpit before the aircraft crashed into a building.

While the AAIB report does not provide any conclusions, there are media reports suggesting that pilot error led to the crash of the Air India plane.