7 years ago, US body flagged potential fuel control switch issue on 737 jets

While a shift in fuel control switches has been cited as the likely cause behind the Air India flight (AI 171) crash, the preliminary probe report spotlights a key issue flagged by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) way back in 2018 on Boeing 737 jets.

In December 2018, the US aviation regulator issued a Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin (SAIB), mentioning that fuel control switches on some Boeing 737 aircraft were installed with the locking feature disengaged.

Since it was just an advisory, it wasn't deemed an unsafe condition. Thus, an Airworthiness Directive - a legally enforceable regulation to correct unsafe conditions in a product - was not issued.

The same switch design is used in Boeing 787-8 jets, including Air India's VT-ANB, which crashed on June 12, killing 260 people.

Since the bulletin by the FAA was advisory and not mandatory, Air India did not perform the recommended inspections.

These switches regulate fuel flow into a plane's engines. They are used by pilots to start or shut down engines on the ground. They are also used to shut down or restart engines if an engine failure occurs midair.

- Ends