An initial investigation into the ill-fated Air India flight that crashed last month has put the spotlight back on its two pilots after it revealed moments of confusion in the cockpit.
The preliminary report published by India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau found that the fuel control switches were moved to the “cut-off” position almost simultaneously, starving the engines of fuel. The brief information comes from the assessment of the voice recorder from the black boxes of the plane.
Moments after the takeoff on a clear day at 1.37pm local time on 12 June, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner bound for London from the Indian city of Ahmedabad began to lose thrust and sink, the report said.
Of the 242 people onboard flight AI171 to London Gatwick, 241 were killed, including 53 British nationals. Only one passenger – a British-Indian man seated in 11A – survived. Nineteen more people died after the plane crashed into a medical college building, taking the death toll to 260.
The report stopped short of attributing blame, but cockpit voice recordings captured one pilot asking, “Why did you cut it off” – with the second replying that he had not cut off the fuel.
Even the insinuation that a pilot’s error could be behind the crash has angered the community. An Indian pilots’ association rejected the presumption of pilot error in the Ahmedabad crash.
The Airline Pilots’ Association of India (ALPA-India), which represents Indian pilots at the Montreal-based International Federation of Air Line Pilots’ Associations, called for “fair, fact-based inquiry.”
“The pilots body must now be made part of the probe, at least as observers,” ALPA India president Sam Thomas said on Sunday.
Captain Sumeet Sabharwal
Sabharwal, 56, started his aviation career in the early 1990s and logged more than 15,000 hours of flying experience. Joining Air India in 1994 he went on to become “line training captain”, a role to train and guide co-pilots during live flights. He had obtained clearances to fly as pilot-in-command on several aircraft including the Boeing 787 and 777 and the Airbus A310.
Out of his total flying experience of 15,638 hours, 8,596 hours were on a Boeing 787.
Sabharwal, a pilot from Mumbai’s Powai suburb, was widely regarded as disciplined and professional, with no complaints ever filed against him. Friends and family remember him as a soft-spoken and humble man.
Though he never married or had children, he shared a close bond with his 88-year-old father, Pushkaraj.
Months away from his retirement, Sabharwal had planned to stay full-time with his father at home to take care of him.
His neighbours earlier told The Indian Express that he had been looking forward to spending more time at home and caring for his ageing parent.
On the day of the crash, he reportedly called his father from the airport shortly before boarding, saying, “I’ll call you once I reach London.” That call never came.
Sabharwal is survived by his elder sister, who lives in Delhi. Both her sons, inspired by their uncle, have become commercial pilots.
First officer Clive Kunder
Unlike Captain Sabharwal, first officer Cliver Kunder, 32, was at the beginning of a promising aviation career, with over 3,400 hours of flight time to his name.
Kunder grew up in Mumbai and was living alone in the Goregaon area. According to Indian media reports citing relatives, he had dreamt of flying since childhood. He began his journey as a pilot in 2012 and joined Air India in 2017.
His commercial pilot’s licence, issued in 2020, was valid until 26 September 2025. He had obtained clearances to fly Cessna 172 and Piper PA-34 Seneca aircraft as pilot-in-command and as co-pilot on Airbus A320 and Boeing 787 jets.
Kunder was also looking forward to a new chapter in his personal life – he was just two months away from his wedding.
At his funeral at Sewri Christian Cemetery near his home, Steffi Miranda, a close friend from Wilson College, addressed the gathering of family and friends.
“Seventeen years ago, we met Clive for the first time. Since then, we watched him grow, evolve, and soar,” she said.
“Though grief surrounds us, there is pride too – in who Clive became. He hasn’t left us; he’s only flying higher now.”
The two pilots’ ties to aviation began at home – Sabharwal’s father, Pushkaraj, had retired from India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), and Kunder’s mother was a former Air India flight attendant.
On Monday, Air India CEO Campbell Wilson said both pilots passed the mandatory pre-flight breathalyser tests, and there were no observations about their medical status.
“The Air India crash investigation is far from over,” Mr Wilson said, adding that the airline continues to cooperate fully with authorities, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters.
However, he cautioned against “premature conclusions” amid growing scrutiny over the preliminary investigation.
In the final words of one of the pilots, most likely of Sabharwal, made a distressed transmission, saying: “Thrust not achieved… falling… Mayday! Mayday! Mayday!”
