New Delhi, Sep 19 (PTI) A PIL has been filed in the Supreme Court, seeking an independent court-monitored probe into the crash of Air India flight AI171 that killed 265 people, including passengers, crew
members and people on the ground, on June 12.
The plea has been filed by “Constitution by Safety Matters Foundation”, an aviation safety NGO led by Captain Amit Singh (FRAeS), alleging that the official probe violates citizens’ fundamental rights to life, equality and access to truthful information.
The plea says the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) issued its preliminary report on July 12, attributing the accident to “fuel cutoff switches” being moved from “run” to “cutoff”, effectively suggesting a pilot error.
It alleges that the report withholds critical information, including the full Digital Flight Data Recorder (DFDR) output, complete Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) transcripts with time stamps and Electronic Aircraft Fault Recording (EAFR) data.
According to the plea, these are indispensable for a transparent and objective understanding of the disaster.
The PIL further criticises the report for downplaying systemic anomalies, such as fuel-switch defects, electrical faults, Ram Air Turbine (RAT) deployment and electrical disturbances, and for prematurely attributing the crash to a pilot error.
It says such an approach is contrary to Annex 13 of the Chicago Convention, which mandates independent, prevention-oriented investigations.
The plea says a “selective and biased” inquiry into a disaster of this magnitude violates Article 21 of the Constitution by compromising citizens’ right to life, safety and dignity, is arbitrary and contrary to Article 14, and suppresses truthful information in breach of Article 19(1)(a).
On June 12, Air India’s Boeing 787-8 aircraft operating flight AI171 en route to London’s Gatwick airport crashed into a medical hostel complex shortly after taking off from Ahmedabad, killing 265 people, including 241 passengers and crew on board.
Among the 241 dead were 169 Indians, 52 Britons, seven Portuguese nationals, one Canadian and 12 crew members.
The lone “miracle” survivor of the crash was Vishwashkumar Ramesh, a British national. PTI SJK RC
