India’s Supreme Court has issued a strong rebuke to the nation’s aviation authorities regarding their handling of the aftermath of the Air India plane crash in June, which resulted in 261 fatalities.
The flight, en route to Gatwick Airport from Ahmedabad, tragically crashed shortly after takeoff, leaving only one survivor and claiming the lives of 242 passengers and 19 individuals on the ground.
The court deemed it “irresponsible” for the aviation authority to insinuate pilot error as the cause of the disaster through media leaks.
The court has requested a formal government response from Prime Minister Narendra Modi before issuing a ruling on a case brought by activists seeking an independent inquiry.
The Supreme Court criticised the aviation body’s “selective and piecemeal” release of its preliminary report into the Boeing Dreamliner crash.
The preliminary report, issued by India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) in July, indicated that fuel supply to the engines was cut off mere seconds after takeoff.
The report also cited a cockpit voice recording in which one pilot reportedly asked the other “why did he cut off,” with the other pilot denying doing so. The recording does not specify the speaker of each statement. At the time of takeoff, the co-pilot was operating the aircraft while the captain monitored the instruments.
The findings of the report have been challenged by the Safety Matters Foundation, an aviation safety group advocating for an independent investigation into the incident.
During a court hearing overseeing the aviation safety group’s petition, a Supreme Court judge stated that suggesting the pilots deliberately shut off fuel supply was “very unfortunate and irresponsible.”
The crash has sparked widespread concerns regarding the safety of Indian airspace.
The chief of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGAC) has defended the country’s safety record, assuring the BBC in July that “India’s skies have always been safe.”
That same month, the DGCA uncovered 51 safety violations at Air India in the preceding year, as part of its annual audit of the country’s airlines.
The families of four passengers killed in the crash have filed a lawsuit in the United States against aircraft manufacturer Boeing and aircraft parts supplier Honeywell, alleging negligence.
The lawsuit asserts that the companies “did nothing” despite being aware of the aircraft’s design flaws.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander approves a £2.2bn privately-financed project at Gatwick Airport.
A spokesperson for the airport said it is continuing to support airlines on Monday due to the aftermath “from the Europe-wide technical issue”.
There has been strong opposition against the airport wanting to use its northern runway.
Plans for the expansion of Gatwick, Heathrow and Luton could mean hundreds of thousands of additional flights a year.