Air India crash in Ahmedabad being probed for sabotage, says Civil Aviation MoS

Speaking to NDTV during the Pune chapter of the Emerging Business Conclave, Mohol said, “It (plane crash) was an unfortunate incident. The AAIB has begun a full investigation into it... It is being probed from all angles, including any possible sabotage. The CCTV footage are being reviewed and all angles are being assessed... several agencies are working on it.”

The black box of the ill-fated London-bound Air India flight AI 171, which crashed on June 12, is in the custody of AAIB and will not be sent overseas, the minister added.

“It will not go anywhere. It is in AAIB's custody and there is no need to send it outside. We will do the entire investigation,” he said.

The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner crashed just seconds after taking off from Ahmedabad’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport around 1.30 pm, killing all but one of the 242 passengers and crew on board.

The aircraft lost altitude shortly after takeoff and slammed into the residential quarters of BJ Medical College doctors in the Meghaninagar area.

It went up in flames, sending thick black smoke into the sky.

Nine students and their relatives from the college were among those killed on the ground.

Mohol said the black box includes both the Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR), which captured the pilots’ conversation, and the Flight Data Recorder (FDR).

“Once the (probe) report comes, we will be able to ascertain if it was an engine problem or fuel supply issue or why both the engines had stopped functioning. It is too early to say anything but whatever it is, it will come out. The report will come in three months,” he said.

He acknowledged that the tragedy had briefly shaken public confidence in air travel but noted that the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had conducted inspections of all 33 Dreamliner aircraft in India following the crash.

“Everything was found safe. That is why I said it was a rare accident. People are no longer scared and travelling comfortably,” he said.