Pilots’ Body Presses AAIB For Deep Electrical Probe In Air India AI-171 Crash Investigation

The Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP) has urged the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) to conduct a thorough examination of the Boeing 787's electrical and avionics systems as part of the investigation into the Air India Flight AI-171 crash. This appeal was made in a letter sent to the AAIB's Director General on September 18, less than a month before the crash's final report is due in October.

The pilots' association pointed out discrepancies in flight simulator timelines and questioned the accuracy of technical evidence derived from simulator testing conducted by the families' legal representatives. These tests revealed a discrepancy between the official timeline and actual aircraft behavior, particularly regarding the interval between fuel interruption and hydraulic power availability from the Ram Air Turbine (RAT).

If the RAT power generation timestamps are accurate, the emergency deployment of the RAT may have occurred before the fuel switches transitioned to the cutoff position. The FIP requested that the AAIB conduct or supervise formal simulator validation exercises to resolve these discrepancies. The association highlighted the unique "More Electric Aircraft" architecture of the Boeing 787, which replaces traditional systems with electrically driven components connected through digital networks.

This high level of system integration could potentially cause widespread issues due to transient electrical disturbances, voltage fluctuations, data-bus anomalies, or power interruptions. The FIP further requested a full review of the accident aircraft's maintenance records, including historical maintenance logs, maintenance records, deferred defects under the Minimum Equipment List, Aircraft Health Monitoring records, ACARS message chronologies, and system performance data.