A rare mechanical anomaly that allowed unintended switch actuation.
The CVR provided clues, but did not definitively answer this question — leaving aviation investigators with a mystery at the heart of the disaster.
There have been reports of tension between Indian and U.S. investigators over interpretation of black box data and analytical conclusions — a sign of the complexity and technical nuance involved in the case.
Maintenance and Aircraft History
The aircraft involved had a maintenance history typical of long‑serving jets, but advocacy groups have claimed that the 787 fleet has had a range of technical issues over the years — including electrical and software anomalies — though none have been conclusively linked to the crash itself.
8. Regulatory and Industry Reactions
The preliminary findings prompted regulators to issue precautionary measures, including inspections of fuel control switches on Boeing aircraft across various fleets — an action aimed at preventing similar accidents elsewhere.
Air India also temporarily reduced certain widebody international operations while conducting additional checks on its Boeing fleet.
The broader aviation community has engaged in reviewing cockpit ergonomics, training protocols, crew resource management, and the physical layout of critical controls — not just within Boeing’s designs, but across all transport category aircraft.
9. The Human Toll and Legacy of the Tragedy
Families and communities across India, the UK, Portugal, Canada, and beyond lost loved ones.
Survivors and first responders have recounted harrowing scenes of destruction and courage.
The disaster has raised questions about safety culture, pilot training, and airline oversight in the modern age.
10. Conclusion: A Crash That Changed How We Understand Flight Safety
The Air India Boeing 787 crash will long be remembered not just for its tragic loss of life, but for the way in which modern aviation — designed around redundancy, safety, and data‑driven evaluation — still confronts risk at every flight.
The black box recordings, painstakingly decoded and analyzed, have provided crucial insight: both engines lost thrust due to fuel cutoff switch movement, leading to catastrophic loss of power just moments after takeoff. While many questions remain — especially surrounding how and why those switches moved — the data brought investigators significantly closer to understanding how an advanced aircraft could fail so suddenly.
The crash underscores the vital importance of black boxes, not only as devices but as storytellers — preserving the final seconds of a flight so that investigators, regulators, and the broader aviation community can learn, adapt, and prevent future tragedies.
