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Time of India
22-07-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
AAIB Probe Unbiased: Naidu
The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has successfully retrieved data from the black box of the Air India Boeing 787 plane that crashed in Ahmedabad last month, civil aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu said on Monday. He said it was the first instance of successful decoding of a crashed aircraft's black box within the country. Responding to questions in the Rajya Sabha, Naidu assured the members that AAIB's ongoing probe into the air crash was 'transparent, rule-based and unbiased,' and followed international protocols. He added that the final AAIB report on the AI171 accident will include a detailed causal analysis, identify contributing factors, and recommend safety measures. Explore courses from Top Institutes in Select a Course Category Finance Leadership Data Science Others Management CXO PGDM healthcare Healthcare others Digital Marketing Degree Project Management Data Analytics Artificial Intelligence Data Science Operations Management Technology MCA MBA Cybersecurity Public Policy Product Management Design Thinking Skills you'll gain: Duration: 9 Months IIM Calcutta SEPO - IIMC CFO India Starts on undefined Get Details Skills you'll gain: Duration: 7 Months S P Jain Institute of Management and Research CERT-SPJIMR Fintech & Blockchain India Starts on undefined Get Details 'Until that report is out, we should not draw conclusions. We want to stand with the truth. Whatever the report says, we will act on it,' the minister said. International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) rules stipulate that the final report should be published within a year of an air crash. He noted that until now, India had been dependent on overseas labs to decode damaged cockpit voice recorders (CVRs) and flight data recorders (FDRs). 'However, for the first time, India took the initiative to decode the black box domestically, even if it appeared damaged externally. This decoding was successfully completed within the country,' he said. On June 12, an Air India 787-8 Dreamliner jet crashed shortly after taking off from the Ahmedabad airport on a scheduled flight to London Gatwick. The aircraft lost power on both engines and descended into a residential area, severely affecting the BJ Medical College hostel. Of the 242 people on board, all but one passenger survived. An additional 19 people on the ground were killed. A preliminary report released on July 12 by AAIB found that the crash was caused by dual engine failure due to disengagement of fuel control switches, which regulate the flow of fuel to the engines. The reasons behind the movement of switches from the 'Run' to 'Cutoff' mode is currently under investigation. Industry executives and experts said AAIB's initial report has raised more questions than it answers. While the report confirmed that both engine fuel control switches were moved to the cutoff position shortly after take-off, it offered no explanation for why or how that occurred. Also, insufficient timeline, analysis, or human factor assessment left key details unclear, including who moved the switches, whether it was intentional, accidental, or due to a system failure, said experts, adding that the report's limited scope is triggering speculation and causing uncertainty around one of India's worst aviation disasters. Naidu, the AAIB, and also the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) of the US have previously criticised the Western media after a series of international reports speculated on the causes of the AI171 crash before the probe was completed. These reports included interpretations of cockpit voice recordings and suggested possible errors or intent, despite the AAIB having only released a preliminary factual report, not a causal analysis. Naidu said a high-level committee led by the home secretary was formed immediately after the crash. The committee has a three-month timeline to recommend improvements in routine safety inspections and pilot training standards, drawing on global best practices. Responding to another question, Naidu informed that 'during the last six months, no adverse trend has been reported in reliability reports of Air India in respect of crashed aircraft'. During this period, a total of nine show cause notices were issued to Air India for five identified safety violations, he said, adding enforcement action has been taken in respect of one violation. Separately, addressing the issue of vacancies in the civil aviation regulator, Naidu said the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is currently operating at about 55% of its sanctioned technical capacity. However, he explained that this was because many new posts have been created only recently. 'This year, we plan to recruit 190 more, with selection expected to conclude by end-October,' he said. 'Nonetheless, we're expediting the process and aiming to fill 90% of the vacancies soon.' According to a Rajya Sabha document, reviewed by ET, between 2022 and 2024, 441 posts were created in the DGCA, including 426 technical posts. In 2024, 84 operational posts were created in the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) as part of a restructuring. The Airports Authority of India (AAI) recently added 840 posts for Air Traffic Control Officers (ATCOs), another Rajya Sabha document showed.
Time of India
21-07-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
AAIB probe into Air India Boeing 787 crash is unbiased: Aviation Minister Ram Naidu
Mumbai: The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has successfully retrieved data from the black box of the Air India Boeing 787 plane that crashed in Ahmedabad last month, civil aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu said on Monday. He said it was the first instance of successful decoding of a crashed aircraft's black box within the country. Responding to questions in the Rajya Sabha, Naidu assured the members that AAIB's ongoing probe into the air crash was "transparent, rule-based and unbiased," and followed international protocols. He added that the final AAIB report on the AI171 accident will include a detailed causal analysis, identify contributing factors, and recommend safety measures. Explore courses from Top Institutes in Select a Course Category healthcare Digital Marketing Others Operations Management Data Analytics PGDM Degree Management Leadership CXO Cybersecurity Product Management Healthcare Project Management Public Policy Technology Data Science Finance Artificial Intelligence Data Science Design Thinking others MCA MBA Skills you'll gain: Duration: 11 Months IIM Lucknow CERT-IIML Healthcare Management India Starts on undefined Get Details "Until that report is out, we should not draw conclusions. We want to stand with the truth. Whatever the report says, we will act on it," the minister said. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like How Much Does It Cost to Rent a Private Jet - The Prices May Surprise You! Private Jet I Search Ads Learn More Undo Initial Findings Raised More Questions International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) rules stipulate that the final report should be published within a year of an air crash. Live Events He noted that until now, India had been dependent on overseas labs to decode damaged cockpit voice recorders (CVRs) and flight data recorders (FDRs). 'However, for the first time, India took the initiative to decode the black box domestically, even if it appeared damaged externally. This decoding was successfully completed within the country,' he said. On June 12, an Air India 787-8 Dreamliner jet crashed shortly after taking off from the Ahmedabad airport on a scheduled flight to London Gatwick. The aircraft lost power on both engines and descended into a residential area, severely affecting the BJ Medical College hostel. Of the 242 people on board, all but one passenger survived. An additional 19 people on the ground were killed. A preliminary report released on July 12 by AAIB found that the crash was caused by dual engine failure due to disengagement of fuel control switches, which regulate the flow of fuel to the engines. The reasons behind the movement of switches from the 'Run' to 'Cutoff' mode is currently under investigation. Industry executives and experts said AAIB's initial report has raised more questions than it answers. While the report confirmed that both engine fuel control switches were moved to the cutoff position shortly after take-off, it offered no explanation for why or how that occurred. Key details left out Also, insufficient timeline, analysis, or human factor assessment left key details unclear, including who moved the switches, whether it was intentional, accidental, or due to a system failure, said experts, adding that the report's limited scope is triggering speculation and causing uncertainty around one of India's worst aviation disasters. Naidu, the AAIB, and also the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) of the US have previously criticised the Western media after a series of international reports speculated on the causes of the AI171 crash before the probe was completed. These reports included interpretations of cockpit voice recordings and suggested possible errors or intent, despite the AAIB having only released a preliminary factual report, not a causal analysis. Naidu said a high-level committee led by the home secretary was formed immediately after the crash. The committee has a three-month timeline to recommend improvements in routine safety inspections and pilot training standards, drawing on global best practices.
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First Post
19-06-2025
- First Post
Air India black box damaged: Is this a setback to the probe? What happens now?
The black box of the crashed Air India AI-171 flight has sustained damage as the plane hit a residential area in Ahmedabad, moments after take-off, last week. Reports say the recorder is likely to be sent to the US for analysing data. What information does the black box hold? read more India is likely to send the black box recovered from the crashed Air India AI-171 flight to the United States for data extraction. The recorder has reportedly sustained damage after the London-bound Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner came down on a residential area in Ahmedabad, moments after take-off, last week. A video of the crash showed the Air India flight struggling to stay airborne before rapidly descending and disappearing behind trees and buildings. This was followed by an explosion in the sky. The plane had crashed into a doctors' accommodation building at the BJ Medical College and Civil Hospital, killing 241 of 242 people on board and 33 on the ground. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD But what is a black box and why is it necessary in the Air India crash investigation? We will explain. What are black boxes? The cockpit voice recorder (CVR) and the flight data recorder (FDR) make up the black boxes on an aircraft. Also known as accident data recorders, flight data recorders store information on several parameters, including altitude, flight speed, flight control, engine performance, fuel, turbulence, wind speed, roll, and autopilot status. A cockpit voice recorder records radio transmissions and other audio in the cockpit, such as conversations between pilots, engine sounds, background noises, landing gear extension and retraction, and instrumentation warnings. The black boxes are usually bright orange in colour, so they can be easily found in the debris of the plane. The flight data recorder from TWA flight 800 is displayed at NTSB headquarters July 25, 1996. File Photo/Reuters How important are black boxes? All commercial flights must have black boxes. The two recorders help investigators piece together events leading to an aircraft mishap. CVRs pick up audio from the crew's microphones, pilots' headsets, and near the centre of the cockpit. They can record two hours of audio data, while 25 hours of flight data remain available on FDRs. Black boxes are highly protective equipment, weighing about 4.5 kg, that record information about a flight and help to find out what led to its crash. 'With the data retrieved from the FDR, the Safety Board can generate a computer animated video reconstruction of the flight. The investigator can then visualise the airplane's attitude, instrument readings, power settings and other characteristics of the flight. This animation enables the investigating team to visualise the last moments of the flight before the accident,' US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said on its website. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'Both the Flight Data Recorder and the Cockpit Voice Recorder have proven to be valuable tools in the accident investigation process. They can provide information that may be difficult or impossible to obtain by other means. When used in conjunction with other information gained in the investigation, the recorders are playing an ever increasing role in determining the probable cause of an aircraft accident,' it added. Can black boxes be destroyed during plane crash? Black boxes are usually installed at the tail end of the aircraft, as it increases their chances of survival during a mishap. The FDR and CVR are kept in one box made of titanium or stainless steel and wrapped with fire and heat-resistant insulation. The black box is designed to withstand an acceleration of 3,400 Gs (3,400 times the force of gravity) and a temperature of up to 1093 degrees Celsius for an hour. FDRs can survive depths of over 6,000 metres underwater. When submerged in water, the beacon present in these devices can transmit ultrasound signals for 30 days. This underwater locator beacon (ULB), which has a battery life of over six years, transmits sound as deep as 14,000 feet and can be tracked by sonar and audio equipment. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD These beacons will not send out ultrasonic pings if the plane crashed on land; thus, the investigators will have to scour the accident site for the black box. Data from the black boxes is stored on 'stacked memory boards inside the crash-survivable memory unit (CSMU)', as per How Stuff Works. These CSMUs can hold out against extreme heat, crashes and tonnes of pressure. 'It is extremely rare for a black box to be destroyed. Black boxes have traditionally outperformed their design,' Scott Hamilton, director of Leeham Co., an aviation consulting company, told NPR. 'It would take a concentrated fire beyond its design strength, or an impact so high that it would be beyond what it could withstand.' However, black boxes have not always helped investigators. It came to light in January that the flight data and cockpit voice recorders on the Jeju Air plane stopped recording nearly four minutes before the airliner hit a concrete structure at the end of a runway at South Korea's Muan International Airport on December 29 last year. The disaster, the worst in South Korea, had killed 179 people. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Questions have arisen about the eight black boxes on the four hijacked flights that crashed during the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the US. As per a 2001 ABC News report, flight data recorders were recovered from Flight 93, which crashed in Pennsylvania. The voice transcript extracted from them is available online, Forbes reported. As per ABC News, the black boxes were also recovered from the collapsed portion of the Pentagon building, where a jet slammed into during the terrorist attacks. Will India send black boxes to the US? India could send the black box of the crashed Air India flight to the US for analysis. The recorder has sustained damage due to the fire as the plane crashed in Ahmedabad, making it difficult to extract the data in India, Economic Times (ET) reported, citing sources. As per Ministry of Civil Aviation sources, the Centre will take a final call on whether to send the black box to the US or not. The black box may be sent to the National Transportation Safety Board laboratory in Washington, DC for examination. In the event it is sent to the US, a contingent of Indian officials will also go with the black box. Sources previously told Indian Express that digital flight data recorder (DFDR) and CVR will be analysed in India or sent abroad, depending on their physical condition and the extent of data analysis needed for the investigation. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'While AAIB had established a laboratory at its headquarters in Delhi last year, it is yet to be properly equipped to extract data from recorders which have sustained heavy damage. The NTSB team will carry them to their lab under protection and supervision from Indian officials to ensure that proper protocols are followed,' a person in the know told ET. The source said it could take two days to months to extract data from the black box, depending on the damage. 'Since the recorder has been damaged, the chip will need to be extracted by removing the memory board so that there is no further damage to data. The electronic circuit will also have to be assessed for damage,' the person said. With inputs from agencies
The Hindu
13-06-2025
- The Hindu
What is a black box? How does it work?
As thousands of commercial flights take to the skies daily, sturdy boxes painted in bright orange hues are tucked away in aircraft fuselage. Those boxes, better known as black boxes, record data during flights without interruption and hold crucial information in plane crashes like the fatal accident of an Air India aircraft on Thursday afternoon (June 12, 2025). Air India Ahmedabad plane crash: Updates In modern aircraft, there are Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) and Digital Flight Data Recorder (DFDR). Generally, they are called black boxes even though they are painted with bright orange colour to ensure high visibility. In some aircraft, the two recorders are integrated. In April 2025, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau set up a flight recorders laboratory at its premises in the national capital for carrying out more effective probes into accidents. DFDRs are coated with bright orange colour, treated with reflex material for high visibility and securely connected with automatically activated signalisation for localisation underwater, according to the agency. Under the Civil Aviation Ministry, the AAIB carries out detailed investigations into accidents and also suggests measures to improve safety. The crash of Air India's Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner plane from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick soon after take-off on Thursday (June 12, 2025) is being probed by AAIB. The development of flight data recorders evolved over a period of time. It started with the use of metal foils for recording data, and later, they were replaced with magnetic tapes. At present, solid-state chips are used in the flight data recorders. Flight recorders history 1950: The first generation of Flight Data Recorders (FDRs) emerged with metal foil as the recording medium. 1953: General Mills sold the first FDR to Lockheed Aircraft Company, enclosed in a yellow-painted spherical shell. 1954: Australia's David Ronald de Mey Warren invented the world's first FDR while probing an air crash. In 1953, Warren, a jet fuel expert, was working as part of a special team analysing mysterious mid-air explosions experienced by the world's first commercial jet aircraft, the de Havilland Comet. Subsequently, he invented the FDR so that the recordings would be helpful in the analysis of aircraft accidents. 1960: FDRs and CVRs are made mandatory for aircraft. 1965: FDRs were required to be painted bright orange or yellow to locate them easily at crash sites. 1990: Solid-state memory devices replaced magnetic tapes in FDRs. According to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), audio recordings from cockpit voice recorders supplement flight data by providing related details on flight crew responses. The recordings also aid in assessments of how radio communications or other outside distractions may have been a factor in an accident. Their data has assisted investigators' understanding of how aircraft perform, both before and during an accident or incident, and provided useful information for airline flight data analysis programmes, as per ICAO.
Hindustan Times
13-06-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
Flight data recorders hold key to aircraft crash investigations
New Delhi/ Mumbai, As thousands of commercial flights take to the skies daily, sturdy boxes painted in bright orange hues are tucked away in aircraft fuselage. Those boxes, better known as black boxes, record data during flights without interruption and hold crucial information in plane crashes like the fatal accident of an Air India aircraft on Thursday afternoon. In modern aircraft, there are Cockpit Voice Recorder and Digital Flight Data Recorder . Generally, they are called black boxes even though they are painted with bright orange colour to ensure high visibility. In some aircraft, the two recorders are integrated. Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau In April 2025, AAIB set up a flight recorders laboratory at its premises in the national capital for carrying out more effective probes into accidents. DFDRs are coated with bright orange colour, treated with reflex material for high visibility and securely connected with automatically activated signalisation for localisation underwater, according to the agency. Under the civil aviation ministry, AAIB carries out detailed investigations into accidents and also suggests measures to improve safety. The crash of Air India's Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner plane from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick soon after take-off on Thursday is being probed by AAIB. Flight recorders trajector The development of flight data recorders evolved over a period of time. It started with the use of metal foils for recording data, and later, they were replaced with magnetic tapes. At present, solid-state chips are used in the flight data recorders. Flight recorders history 1950 The first generation of Flight Data Recorders emerged with metal foil as the recording medium. 1953 General Mills sold the first FDR to Lockheed Aircraft Company, enclosed in a yellow-painted spherical shell. 1954 Australia's David Ronald de Mey Warren invented the world's first FDR while probing an air crash. In 1953, Warren, a jet fuel expert, was working as part of a special team analysing mysterious mid-air explosions experienced by the world's first commercial jet aircraft, the de Havilland Comet. Subsequently, he invented the FDR so that the recordings would be helpful in the analysis of aircraft accidents. 1960 FDRs and CVRs are made mandatory for aircraft. 1965 FDRs were required to be painted bright orange or yellow to locate them easily at crash sites. 1990 Solid-state memory devices replaced magnetic tapes in FDRs According to the International Civil Aviation Organization , audio recordings from cockpit voice recorders supplement flight data by providing related details on flight crew responses. The recordings also aid in assessments of how radio communications or other outside distractions may have been a factor in an accident. Their data has assisted investigators' understanding of how aircraft perform, both before and during an accident or incident, and provided useful information for airline flight data analysis programmes, as per ICAO.
