Air India crash LIVE: 241 people on board London Gatwick-bound flight died with Brit sole survivor, airline says
'We also know that there are 169 Indian nationals on the flight who are almost certainly visiting family and friends in the United Kingdom, but we don't know where they were visiting or who they were visiting, what part of their family was, so a lot of the work that's going on right now is to identify who those people are and who they're visiting.'
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Sydney Morning Herald
35 minutes ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
‘Flickering green and white': Inside the cabin seconds before the Air India crash
In his final message to air traffic controllers, the plane's pilot said the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner had 'no thrust', was 'losing power' and was 'unable to lift'. The Dreamliner is designed to be able to climb and fly safely in the event of having only one engine operational. Speculation has been rife over what may have caused the crash, including the possibility of pilot error, faulty flaps, electrical problems or engine failure. A bird strike is a prominent hypothesis, and could have caused a catastrophic engine failure leading to such a situation, but there has been no evidence of flocks in the area at the time of the crash. 'More than one thing went wrong here. The thing that might have started it, and I think probably did, was a loss of power,' Learmount said 'Whether it was loss of power on one engine or both engines is not clear. But the failure of a single engine should not cause a crew to lose control of a modern airliner, even in the critical early climb phase. Loading 'At the same time, simultaneous engine failures for unconnected reasons simply do not happen, based on the entire history of aviation. So if there was a failure of both, the question is what could have caused it.' The two engines on the plane are made by General Electric aviation and have a good safety history. On Friday, the Indian aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, issued a notice to Air India to conduct more inspections of all of its 787-8 and 787-9 fleet with GE engines. This includes an inspection of the fuel monitoring systems, a test of the electronic engine control, a check of the hydraulics and a review of take-off parameters. 'Power assurance checks' are also to be done on each plane within two weeks. Dr Akhil Bhardwaj, a senior lecturer in aviation safety at the University of Bath, said he believed the DGCA was acting with an 'understandable abundance of caution'. Last year, a United Airlines 787 jet, which has the same GEnx-1B engines as the doomed AI 171 flight, suffered an 'uncontained left engine failure shortly after take-off' while flying from Singapore to San Francisco last year, according to a National Transportation Safety Board report. The engine ceased working at cruise altitude and set alight, according to the report, with the pilots managing to circle back and land the plane in Singapore using just one engine. A GE Aerospace spokesman said: 'Safety is our top priority, and we support the action being taken by the Indian Directorate General of Civil Aviation for enhanced safety inspections of the Air India 787-8/9 fleet. 'We continue to work closely with the appropriate regulatory and investigative agencies, and we are committed to providing all technical support necessary to understand the cause of this accident.' Loading Experts have suggested that the Dreamliner, which until Thursday had an unblemished safety record, also deployed its Ram Air Turbine (RAT) during the ill-fated 60 seconds between take-off and the crash. The RAT is a propeller-like device that sits in the fuselage between the wings and is only deployed in the most dangerous situations, to provide emergency power to vital electrical systems. Sambulo Matema, a lecturer in aviation management at University College Birmingham, said: 'There is credence to this theory. In a complete power‑loss scenario, the aircraft transitions from engine‑supplied power to RAT power, and lighting anomalies can occur.' Loading 'This behaviour aligns with established emergency procedures and the expected performance of aircraft electrical systems under severe duress. 'After total power loss, the RAT deploys as a fallback power source. During this transition, green emergency lighting activates, and white lights may flash while onboard systems reboot and stabilise.' Learmount, who flew Hercules military transport planes around the Middle East during his RAF career, said the RAT would have sent power to the cockpit. The plane's batteries would also have supported vital systems. However, neither could have done anything to keep the plane aloft in the event of its turbines spooling down. Loading All this suggests the fault lay in the engines. However, what could have caused them to shut down remains unclear. One theory is contaminated fuel. In 2010, a Cathay Pacific flight to Hong Kong almost ended in disaster when the pilot was unable to control engine thrust, leading it to land at twice the usual speed. It later emerged that fuel pumped into the plane had been contaminated with saltwater, damaging its engines over time. However, such problems are rare. Learmount said: 'If you go looking for a potential cause of multiple engine failure, fuel contamination could do it. But again, history is against that potential cause in observed reality.'
The Age
40 minutes ago
- The Age
‘Flickering green and white': Inside the cabin seconds before the Air India crash
In his final message to air traffic controllers, the plane's pilot said the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner had 'no thrust', was 'losing power' and was 'unable to lift'. The Dreamliner is designed to be able to climb and fly safely in the event of having only one engine operational. Speculation has been rife over what may have caused the crash, including the possibility of pilot error, faulty flaps, electrical problems or engine failure. A bird strike is a prominent hypothesis, and could have caused a catastrophic engine failure leading to such a situation, but there has been no evidence of flocks in the area at the time of the crash. 'More than one thing went wrong here. The thing that might have started it, and I think probably did, was a loss of power,' Learmount said 'Whether it was loss of power on one engine or both engines is not clear. But the failure of a single engine should not cause a crew to lose control of a modern airliner, even in the critical early climb phase. Loading 'At the same time, simultaneous engine failures for unconnected reasons simply do not happen, based on the entire history of aviation. So if there was a failure of both, the question is what could have caused it.' The two engines on the plane are made by General Electric aviation and have a good safety history. On Friday, the Indian aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, issued a notice to Air India to conduct more inspections of all of its 787-8 and 787-9 fleet with GE engines. This includes an inspection of the fuel monitoring systems, a test of the electronic engine control, a check of the hydraulics and a review of take-off parameters. 'Power assurance checks' are also to be done on each plane within two weeks. Dr Akhil Bhardwaj, a senior lecturer in aviation safety at the University of Bath, said he believed the DGCA was acting with an 'understandable abundance of caution'. Last year, a United Airlines 787 jet, which has the same GEnx-1B engines as the doomed AI 171 flight, suffered an 'uncontained left engine failure shortly after take-off' while flying from Singapore to San Francisco last year, according to a National Transportation Safety Board report. The engine ceased working at cruise altitude and set alight, according to the report, with the pilots managing to circle back and land the plane in Singapore using just one engine. A GE Aerospace spokesman said: 'Safety is our top priority, and we support the action being taken by the Indian Directorate General of Civil Aviation for enhanced safety inspections of the Air India 787-8/9 fleet. 'We continue to work closely with the appropriate regulatory and investigative agencies, and we are committed to providing all technical support necessary to understand the cause of this accident.' Loading Experts have suggested that the Dreamliner, which until Thursday had an unblemished safety record, also deployed its Ram Air Turbine (RAT) during the ill-fated 60 seconds between take-off and the crash. The RAT is a propeller-like device that sits in the fuselage between the wings and is only deployed in the most dangerous situations, to provide emergency power to vital electrical systems. Sambulo Matema, a lecturer in aviation management at University College Birmingham, said: 'There is credence to this theory. In a complete power‑loss scenario, the aircraft transitions from engine‑supplied power to RAT power, and lighting anomalies can occur.' Loading 'This behaviour aligns with established emergency procedures and the expected performance of aircraft electrical systems under severe duress. 'After total power loss, the RAT deploys as a fallback power source. During this transition, green emergency lighting activates, and white lights may flash while onboard systems reboot and stabilise.' Learmount, who flew Hercules military transport planes around the Middle East during his RAF career, said the RAT would have sent power to the cockpit. The plane's batteries would also have supported vital systems. However, neither could have done anything to keep the plane aloft in the event of its turbines spooling down. Loading All this suggests the fault lay in the engines. However, what could have caused them to shut down remains unclear. One theory is contaminated fuel. In 2010, a Cathay Pacific flight to Hong Kong almost ended in disaster when the pilot was unable to control engine thrust, leading it to land at twice the usual speed. It later emerged that fuel pumped into the plane had been contaminated with saltwater, damaging its engines over time. However, such problems are rare. Learmount said: 'If you go looking for a potential cause of multiple engine failure, fuel contamination could do it. But again, history is against that potential cause in observed reality.'
Time of India
41 minutes ago
- Time of India
HC tells CBSE to rectify student records by updating official DoB
New Delhi: Delhi High Court has emphasised the "presumption of correctness" attached to official birth certificates and directed the Central Board of Secondary Education ( CBSE ) to amend a student's academic records accordingly. A division bench comprising Justices Subramonium Prasad and Harish V Shankar, in a recent order, underlined the "imminent need" to ensure consistency across official documents. This, the court said, not only affirms the accuracy of personal details in public records but also protects a citizen's identity—of which the date of birth is a crucial component. "A citizen of this country is entitled to a true and correct narration of all necessary and relevant particulars in the public documents that pertain to them. CBSE is a record keeper of considerable importance," the court observed, while dismissing CBSE's appeal against a single judge's order to correct the date of birth in certificates issued in 1999. The bench noted that documents like official birth certifiscates, issued by a competent authority, carry a statutory presumption of correctness under Indian law. It further remarked that CBSE had provided "no cogent reason" to disregard the birth certificate in this case. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Simple. Clean. Solitaire Play Solitaire Download Undo "Accordingly, the Board is expected to take due notice of such statutory public documents and effect consequential corrections in its records," the bench directed. The court reiterated that the matriculation certificate is widely regarded as "unassailable proof of date of birth", and citizens are entitled to have all public documents reflect accurate and consistent information. The plea before the court involved a student seeking rectification of her date of birth in CBSE records based on a birth certificate issued by the Greater Chennai Corporation. The HC noted that the genuineness of the birth certificate had not been disputed. It also observed that discrepancies between CBSE record and other official documents such as the individual's passport could cause serious complications, including for employment or immigration. In its defense, CBSE argued that the request for correction was filed beyond the time limit prescribed under its examination bye-laws, and that it no longer retained relevant records more than a decade later. However, the single judge had earlier ruled that the incorrect date of birth in the CBSE records appeared to result from a genuine mistake—not a clerical or typographical error. Finding no fault in that conclusion, the HC upheld the single judge's decision and dismissed the CBSE's appeal. Follow more information on Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad here . Get real-time live updates on rescue operations and check full list of passengers onboard AI 171 .
