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Supreme Court Seeks Replies on AI171 Crash Inquiry, Says Pilot Not to Blame

The court will hear the petition on November 10 following notices to the Centre and DGCA.

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The matter will now be heard next week along with a similar plea filed earlier by NGO Safety Matters Foundation, on which the same bench issued notice in September.
Air India plane crash: Supreme Court tells pilot's father that no one blames his son
On June 12, Air India’s AI-171 took off from Ahmedabad airport for London’s Gatwick airport, but crashed a few seconds later, killing 260 people. | Image: Republic

Overview

  • Pilot-in-command Captain Sumeet Sabharwal’s father, joined by the Federation of Indian Pilots, has petitioned for a judge-led, independent probe into the June 12 Air India crash near Ahmedabad.
  • A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi issued notices to authorities including the Centre and DGCA and scheduled the matter for November 10, to be taken up with a similar pending plea.
  • The judges said there is no basis to blame the pilot and noted the preliminary AAIB report contains no insinuation against him.
  • The bench said foreign media reports, cited by the petitioner as suggesting pilot error, have no bearing on the court’s process and criticized such coverage.
  • The AAIB’s preliminary report recorded both engine fuel switches moving to cutoff and a cockpit exchange, while petitioners argue technical evidence such as Ram Air Turbine deployment warrants a deeper, independent technical investigation.