No issues found: Air India after inspecting fuel control switch of all Boeing aircraft
Air India's statement came after it completed precautionary inspections on the locking mechanism of fuel control switch (FCS) on all Boeing 787 and Boeing 737 aircraft in its fleet.
New Delhi: Air India, on Tuesday, said that it found no issues with fuel control switches of all its aircraft. The airline's statement came after it completed precautionary inspections on the locking mechanism of fuel control switch (FCS) on all Boeing 787 and Boeing 737 aircraft in its fleet. The airline carried out the inspection after a preliminary probe report on the June 12 Air India plane crash indicated that the fuel control switches of the ill-fated aircraft were turned off seconds before the tragic accident.
"Boeing 737 aircraft are part of the fleet of Air India Express, Air India’s low cost subsidiary. With this, the two airlines have complied with the directives of the DGCA issued on July 14, 2025. In the inspections, no issues were found with the said locking mechanism," the airline said in a statement.
Air India started voluntary inspections on July 12 and completed them within the prescribed time limit set by the DGCA. The same has been communicated to the regulator, it said. "Air India remains committed to the safety of passengers and crew members," the statement added.
The Air India plane from Ahmedabad to London crashed on June 12, less than a minute after taking off from the airport, killing 241 out of 242 on board. According to Air Accident Investigation Bureau's (AAIB) preliminary probe report, the fuel control switches that regulate fuel flow to both engines of an aircraft were moved to the cutoff position from run, one after another within a 1-second time gap. One of the pilots, in the cockpit voice recording, was also heard asking the other why did he cutoff the fuel control switches. The other pilot said that he did not do so.
"The aircraft achieved the maximum recorded airspeed of 180 Knots IAS at about 08:08:42 UTC and immediately thereafter, the Engine 1 and Engine 2 fuel cutoff switches transitioned from RUN to CUTOFF position one after another with a time gap of 01 sec. The Engine N1 and N2 began to decrease from their take-off values as the fuel supply to the engines was cutoff," stated the 15-page report published exactly one month after the mishap.