3 Probable reason for Boeing 787 Disaster at Ahmedabad airport
Capt.Parthosarathy Pilot
June 15, 2025
The tragic disaster of Air India Flight AI 171 from Ahmedabad City to London. Aircraft initiated take-off at 13:39( IST) 13:39.25 hours Declared Emergency with MAYDAY CALL . Aircraft achieved 625 feet AGL height then started sinking at 13:39.45 last reported altitude 25 feet and velocity of Aircraft around 171kts( 320 km per hours speed) when it has crashed over Medical college hostel and Burst into a flame during Takeoff with full loaded fuel of 1.25 lakh Ton onboard. Consequentl impact is complete loss of Boeing 787 dreamliner Aircraft, loss of life 241 onboard 24+ on ground near Medical college campus.
Initial analysis without verified real fact since Black Box( CVR , DFDR) data is not available with the public at least 3 months until complete investigation gets over by verious accident investigation agency around the world to find out the real cause of this Fatal crash in Indian Aviation history since 42 years .
Probability of 3 reasons I am describing as below since we have only 2 circulated video available from Media , one eye witnesses statement from a miraculous crash survivor & DGCA statement About MAY DAY call to ATC by Operating Pilot 15 second prior disaster.
During Take off roll it appears Aircraft took longer run than normal on the runway and Aircraft was rolling with Crab flying method towards right look like Thrust asymmetry ( may be One Engine already fail before lift off from the ground).
Aircraft Air born and Instant attitude of aircraft increase to 12+° , left wing slightly low , No action observe about Retract Landing Gear ( Wheel assembly) after Airborne . No significant Smoke or Fire Flame or Engine compressor surge or any Big thud noise has been observed by 1 survivor too. The aircraft gained altitude at around 625 feet and started sinking with the same attitude with additional attitude rise at last resort, No nose down dive finally crashed over the Medical college hostel campus which is almost 15° degree offset to the left from takeoff Runway alignment 230 magnetic heading of ahmedabad runway & almost 3NM away from runway. Landing Gear remained extended till the crash.
Probable Theory 1:- Largely spoken about both Engine failure or shutdown due to Bird hit or Fuel starvation may be with combination of all Electrical Hydraulic pressure pump loss due to electrical failure which restricted pilot to retract Landing gear . Manually chocking fuel line valve as a part of Sabotage Act by non- state actor sleeper cell division or unintentionally forgot to open fuel valve which was closed during maintenance activities by technical team and out of rush for departure schedule this unpardonable mistake has occurred.
As we all know we lost Air India Kanishka Aircraft( Boeing 747) during 1984 over the Atlantic Ocean due to sabotage and bomb blast in air by Khalistani extremists, so I cannot ignore totally such possibility too since Operation Sindur exercise has been executed recently.
Probable Theory -2:-
Aircraft departed from Runway 23 intersection Turn pad wich is almost loss of 2500 feet beginning of the runway, lost Left Engine power first during Take-off roll after V-1 (Action Initiation speed) subsequently Right engine was in full power following by longer run over the runway to achieve Vr speed( Takeoff rotation speed) with adequate Rudder control input then rotation initiated faster than normal, Landing Gear remain extended till the end so additional drag remain same which has contributed to reduce lift capability / Gliding capability of Aircraft without power. After achieving 400 feet AGL as per Standard emergency Memory action initiated by both the Pilot where may be Pilot non-flying has cut off Live Engine Start lever instead of Dead engine start lever so immediate power loss to the live engine, complete loss of thrust to gain Altitude or increase speed but aircraft was maintaining attitude of the nose up degree of angle so loss to Controllable speed following by sinking towards ground with same attitude. Additionally Landing gear( Wheels) remain extended so further deterioration of lift and increase Drag to the airplane subsequently impact on the ground after 45-45 second.
3) Probable Theory Three in 2 part :-
Part A):- After normal Liftoff from the Runway surface on takeoff path ,
Flying Pilot order for Landing Gear Up ( Wheels Retract) but Non flying Pilot has Retracted Take off Flaps instead of Landing Gear unintentionally. Subsequently Drag remains the same with Wheels extended but loss of lift & speed becomes insufficient to hold the aircraft in air so Aircraft has encountered Power-On( with both engines on takeoff thrust) CFIT( control flight into terrain ) Stall near Ground with take- off attitude following by crash and blusted into flames after 40 second of struggle to save the airplane with fallow innocent souls on board. If a vicinity citizen reported no noise of aircraft until Burst into flames then it is definitely complete Power loss of both engine, if people reported low level heavy engine noise untill hit the ground building then it has to be Thrust on Stall with high angle of attack of aircraft.
Part -B) Load and trim sheet guy may have given incorrect data of Aircraft for baggage + Cargo loading compartment followed by incorrect Center of gravity calculation and wrong take off trim ( CG) setting data has been provided to Pilot to feed in Flight Management Computer+ Trim wheel set-up for take-off. Subsequently additional disadvantage of Intersection departure from Runway 23( reduce length of runway by 2500 feet at the beginning) such a heavily loaded aircraft with High temperature at 13:38 IST. hours and less density which is the worst combination for Aircraft lift capability performance during takeoff .
Let me elaborate Probable Theory 1 once again - If both Engine fail due to fuel line chock / contamination,
The amount of fuel that can fit in the supply pipe from the main switch of the fuel tank to the engine can keep the engine running for only 30-40 seconds. In this time, a flight of about 625 feet is possible but we have to remember that after start both engine of this aircraft successfully at Airport Appron then Taxi out this same aircraft upto Runway back track at Ahmedabad which will be at around 10 minutes duration minimum when Pilot didn't observe any abnormalities with any system neither Aircraft inbuilt Warning system risen any such alert.
Before leaving for a long flight like destination London where 127000 liters of fuel was filled and the main switch of the fuel tank was turned off - during the inspection by the ground technical staff the fuel tank and main switch etc. are also checked. Therefore, there is no possibility of external terrorist activities. Many people could have survived the crash from such a low altitude but it is difficult to survive the explosion of 127000 liters of fuel & it's heat .
Boeing 787 Fuel System – Main Components and Functioning
1. Fuel Tanks
Left, Right, and Center tanks — center tank holds about 67.5 tons, each wing tank about 16.9 tons of fuel
2. Pumps and Valves
Two AC-pumps in each tank: forward (FWD) and aft (AFT)
If all pumps are off — the engine runs on suction feed, but it is not enough to climb the aircraft during take with 12-15 ° Pitch attitude.
If the main fuel valve remained closed, the engines would run only on fuel left in the pipeline from fuel tank up to engine- which would be sufficient for about 30–40 seconds.
During this time, the plane could reach a height of about 625 feet
Then fuel exhausted → both engines shut down → aircraft descent with same attitude→ impact with explosion
1. Before a long-range flight, all systems are mandatory to checked:
2. Flight crew (pilots) are called to accept flight after aircraft checks satisfactorily by the technical team only.
Pilot job is to double-verify the systems using the preflight checklist — but they are not authorized to open/close the fuel line valve configuration or tank venting system.
As soon as the fuel in the line is exhausted → both engines flame out after 40-45 seconds → the plane will fall from the sky due to total lift capability loss on the takeoff path .
Flight data recorder (FDR) +
Crew CVR Did will provide all information where pilot get any fuel pressure alert? Did they say anything after V-1 speed ?
If it is sabotage via fuel line chock:
Signals confirmed
The valve was closed intentionally. Technical probability 100%
Access only to inspection staff . No access to Pilot or others.
Happened after refueling Otherwise fuel would not have been filled
After final technical clearance because aircraft had reached taxing to takeoff position without any warning or alarm during Takeoff roll too.
This tragic loss of airplane means loss of aspirations of so many people about aviation, travellers will develop fear of flying more, Loss of 265+ innocent Life ,severe impact to associate family members, their children, their next keen , old parents trauma ,huge financial loss and safety reputation loss to the airline etc etc.There is no word to explain about bereaved family members sorrow, pain , anguishes. Even life loss financial compansation cannot give them happy moments of life back again .
Let us unitedly remain standby with bereaved family and remain vigilant in future during any flight whenever you travel next time if you find something unusual you have noticed during a phase of flight please do not hesitate to share such valuable information to any aviation personal. Your valuable input may save so many life from any kind of aviation disaster. Please remember Civil Aviation is the one and only safest mode of Transportation from point A to point B since this industry is highly regulated by government agencies around the world, multiple layer of checks and balances .
Wishing you all a happy flying and may see you onboard few of my flight in future.
(Writer-Capt.Parthosarathy Pilot, an Airline Pilot from Agartala)
(Tripurainfo)
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