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New lab, old problem: India's new Rs 9 crore black box lab fails first big test, govt sends Air India crash plane black box to US
Just two months after inaugurating a state-of-the-art laboratory for analysing aircraft black boxes, the Indian government has decided to send the
flight data recorder
and
cockpit voice recorder
from the recent Air India crash to the United States for decoding. The move highlights limitations in India's newly launched facility, which was expected to handle such critical investigations.
The black box, retrieved from the crashed Air India
Boeing
787-9 Dreamliner, could not be decoded at the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau's (AAIB) Digital Flight Data Recorder and Cockpit Voice Recorder (DFDR & CVR) Laboratory in New Delhi. Officials confirmed that the equipment was too damaged for the current setup to extract data.
Lab inaugurated in April for advanced analysis
In April, Union Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu inaugurated the DFDR & CVR Laboratory at the AAIB headquarters in New Delhi. Built with an investment of Rs 9 crore and technical support from
Hindustan Aeronautics Limited
(HAL), the facility was designed to recover flight data and conduct detailed crash investigations.
It aimed to meet international standards and enable India to independently analyse black boxes without sending them abroad. The lab was expected to reduce dependency on foreign agencies and improve the speed of investigations.
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Extent of damage forces reliance on US agency
Despite its capabilities, the lab could not decode the data due to the extensive damage to the black box. Officials said, 'AAIB experts attempted to retrieve the data but found that the extent of damage to the recorders necessitates more sophisticated equipment.'
The recorders will now be sent to the US-based
National Transportation Safety Board
(NTSB) for data recovery. A team from the
NTSB
will handle the transport under Indian supervision to ensure proper chain of custody. The United Kingdom's Air Accidents Investigation Branch will also be involved in the investigation, as 53 British citizens were among the passengers killed.
Black box recovery process
Experts handling the recovery process will attempt to extract the memory board chip and inspect the damaged circuitry. This is a delicate operation, and any mistake could result in permanent data loss.
The decision to send the recorders abroad has drawn attention to the need for further investment in advanced forensic tools at the Indian facility.
Importance of black boxes in crash investigations
Black boxes, which include the Flight Data Recorder (FDR) and Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR), are essential tools for accident investigation. The FDR logs flight details such as altitude, speed, and engine data, while the CVR captures cockpit audio and conversations.
In commercial aircraft like the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, these devices are located in the tail section to increase chances of survival during crashes. They are built to withstand high-impact crashes and extreme heat.
India's fast-growing aviation sector relies heavily on timely and thorough investigations to improve safety standards. The inability of the newly opened AAIB lab to handle this case has raised questions about its readiness to deal with complex crash scenarios.
