Air India Flight 171 Crash Investigation: Intact Black Box Holds Key to Unlocking Causes of Tragedy

The Air India Flight 171 crash has sent shockwaves across the nation, with many questions surrounding the circumstances that led to the tragic event. On Saturday, officials revealed that the black box recovered from the crash site in Ahmedabad showed minimal damage, raising hopes for some early clues about what caused the Boeing 787 jet to crash. The data contained in the black box is likely to be extracted in India itself, which could expedite the investigation process. The investigation is being led by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), with assistance from the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board and Boeing officials.

Investigation Progress and Key Findings

According to officials, the relatively intact condition of the flight data recorder represents a crucial break for investigators. The data may still have to be shared with Boeing and the manufacturer of the plane’s engines, GE, for analysis. A police officer said that crash site analysis by National Security Guard teams using advanced scanners and sniffer dogs found no evidence of explosives at the BJ Medical College complex, where the plane crashed and exploded. Some key highlights of the investigation include:

* The black box contains not just voice recordings from the cockpit but data on every activity inside the aircraft, including which buttons pilots pressed, levers they activated, and what settings instruments were put to.
* The recovered black box is likely to be analyzed by the AAIB at its headquarters in Delhi.
* A new laboratory built in Delhi to correlate data from cockpit voice recorders, radar, and flight data recorders will enhance accuracy in air investigations.
* Teams from the AAIB are focusing on recovering the aircraft’s tail section, which contains the second black box.
* The Boeing 787 has two black boxes, one at each end of the aircraft, for redundancy.

Security Concerns and Debris Removal

The NSG inspection on Saturday morning using advanced scanners and K9 units from Delhi and Ahmedabad cleared security concerns about the crash. However, NSG teams made a grim discovery—the body of a woman, possibly a crew member, trapped beneath the aircraft’s tail section that had been lodged in the wall of the hostel mess of the medical college. After receiving clearance from NSG and police, two large cranes were deployed on Saturday afternoon to remove the aircraft’s tail section from the hostel mess wall—a delicate operation that took nearly four hours.

As Sujata, a homemaker whose house is adjacent to the complex, noted, “The plane missed hitting our colony by just about 100-200 metres. Police said entry will be banned for a few more days, so this means the plane’s parts will be kept there till that time.” The crash site remains under heavy security, with Gujarat police and Air India officials guarding aircraft components scattered across the medical college campus.

Reconstructing the Aircraft and Understanding the Sequence of Failures

The wreckage will eventually be moved to a hangar at the airport or an airbase close to the city, where investigators will attempt to reconstruct the aircraft to understand the sequence of failures that led to the crash. As an official explained, “At the hangar or the air base, wherever it is taken, the remaining part of the damaged aircraft will be put together to probe what led to the crash.” Boeing officials are expected to visit the site and examine the wreckage before any major relocation occurs.

The committee to probe the Air India crash, formed by the Aviation Ministry, is expected to submit its report within three months. The report will provide a detailed analysis of the causes of the crash and recommendations to prevent such incidents in the future.

Conclusion and Next Steps

In conclusion, the investigation into the Air India Flight 171 crash is ongoing, with the relatively intact black box providing a crucial lead in understanding the causes of the tragedy. The AAIB, with assistance from international experts, will analyze the data from the black box and reconstruct the aircraft to determine the sequence of failures that led to the crash. The incident has raised questions about aviation safety, and the investigation’s findings will be crucial in preventing such incidents in the future.

Keywords: Air India Flight 171, Boeing 787, Black Box, Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau, AAIB, U.S. National Transportation Safety Board, Aviation Ministry, Aviation Safety, Air Crash Investigation

Hashtags: #AirIndiaFlight171 #Boeing787 #BlackBox #AAIB #AviationSafety #AirCrashInvestigation #AviationMinistry #USNTSB



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