US Aviation Body, Boeing Say Fuel Switch Locks Safe Amid Air India Crash Probe: Report
A 2018 FAA alert advised, but didn't mandate, airlines to inspect locking mechanisms on fuel cutoff switches across several Boeing models, the report said.
As investigations continue into the fatal crash of an Air India Boeing 787-8 aircraft last month, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Boeing have privately reassured global aviation authorities and operators that the aircraft's fuel switch locking mechanisms are safe, according to a document reviewed by Reuters and four sources familiar with the matter.
The FAA issued a Continued Airworthiness Notification to the International Community (CANIC) on July 11, stating that it did not consider the design of the fuel control switches — including the locking features — to constitute 'an unsafe condition" that would require formal directives for any Boeing models, including the 787. Reuters reviewed the notification, which was sent to civil aviation authorities globally.
'Although the fuel control switch design, including the locking feature, is similar on various Boeing aeroplane models, the FAA does not consider this issue to be an unsafe condition," the notification said.
When asked for comment, the FAA declined to elaborate beyond the contents of the notification, Reuters reported.
Boeing, in parallel, communicated with airline operators through a Multi-Operator Message (MOM), referencing the FAA's position and stating that no immediate action was recommended. Two sources told Reuters that Boeing, too, is not planning any corrective changes at this point. The aircraft manufacturer referred further queries to the FAA.
The assurances follow a preliminary report by India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) into the crash, which killed all 260 people on board. The report highlighted that the aircraft's engine fuel cutoff switches flipped from 'run" to 'cutoff" almost simultaneously during takeoff — a key event that investigators are scrutinising.
The report also cited a 2018 FAA Safety Alert for Operators (SAFO) that had advised — but not mandated — airlines to inspect the locking mechanism on fuel cutoff switches for several Boeing models, including the 787. Air India stated that it had not conducted those inspections, as they were not compulsory.
However, maintenance logs showed the aircraft's throttle control module, which houses the switches, had been replaced in 2019 and again in 2023.
The AAIB concluded that all applicable airworthiness directives and service bulletins had been complied with before the crash.
Meanwhile, ALPA India, the body representing Indian pilots under the International Federation of Air Line Pilots' Associations, has pushed back against what it sees as premature conclusions about pilot error. In a statement to Reuters, ALPA India President Sam Thomas urged authorities to allow the pilots' union to observe the probe and called for a 'fair, fact-based inquiry."
'The pilot's body must now be made part of the probe, at least as observers," Thomas told Reuters, pointing to the same 2018 advisory as a sign of potential equipment malfunction.
The cockpit voice recorder captured one pilot asking the other why he had cut the fuel supply during takeoff, to which the latter reportedly responded that he had not, Reuters reported. Investigators have yet to determine how the switches could have been flipped during the flight.
Two US-based aviation safety experts echoed ALPA India's call for transparency, though they told Reuters they did not see any overt bias in the AAIB's preliminary findings. John Cox, a former U.S. ALPA representative, described the report as 'objective and fair."
(With inputs from Reuters)
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July 14, 2025, 08:52 IST
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