Air India Crash Probe: AAIB Ropes In ‘Human Factor Specialists’

Last Updated:July 31, 2025, 22:45 IST

This is important, as multiple reports in the Western media have laid the blame on the senior pilot for the AI-171 crash

The Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner, bound for London, crashed shortly after takeoff on Thursday, June 12. File pic/PTI

The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has roped in “human factor specialists" besides others in its ongoing probe into the AI-171 Ahmedabad crash, the government told Parliament on Thursday.

This is important, as multiple reports in the Western media have laid the blame on the senior pilot for the AI-171 crash. Both the AAIB and the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) have scotched such reports, appealing to all not to jump to any conclusion. The government has said all the angles are under probe.

What government said

“B787 type-rated experienced pilots, type-rated engineers, aviation medicine specialist, human factor specialists and flight recorder specialists have been taken on board as Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) to assist the investigation," minister of state for civil aviation Murlidhar Mohol told Parliament.

He added that the preliminary report published on the AAIB website in July does not contain any conclusion.

Defects in aircraft

The government also told Parliament that a total of 2,094 investigations have been carried out against serious defects or snags reported in various aircraft during the last five years up to June 2025. These were all technical defects—514 reported in 2021, 528 in 2022, 448 in 2023, 421 in 2024, and 183 in 2025. “All defects which are serious in nature shall be intimated immediately by all operators to DGCA. During the DGCA audit, if it is observed that defects have not been reported by the airline, DGCA initiates investigation and takes appropriate action as per enforcement policy and procedure manual," the government has said.

The government also said that there have been a total of eight accidents (involving 1 scheduled aircraft, 3 trainee aircraft and 4 helicopters) reported in the year 2025. These led to the loss of 274 lives, it said.

Aman Sharma

Aman Sharma, Executive Editor - National Affairs at CNN-News18, and Bureau Chief at News18 in Delhi, has over two decades of experience in covering the wide spectrum of politics and the Prime Minister’s Office....Read More

Aman Sharma, Executive Editor - National Affairs at CNN-News18, and Bureau Chief at News18 in Delhi, has over two decades of experience in covering the wide spectrum of politics and the Prime Minister’s Office....

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