Air India AI-171 crash: Black boxes recovered and under analysis, says Civil Aviation Ministry. Probe underway as per international investigation protocols. Photo/X.
Air India AI-171 Black Boxes: Data from the black boxes of Air India Flight AI-171 has been successfully downloaded, the Ministry of Civil Aviation said on Thursday. The Ministry said, the extraction process was carried out at the AAIB Lab in Delhi with assistance from US experts. Officials are now analyzing the recordings to reconstruct the crash sequence and identify contributing factors.
The Ministry of Civil Aviation has released a detailed update on the ongoing investigation into the crash of Air India Flight AI-171.
AAIB is currently analyzing the black boxes with efforts fully aligned with international standards and domestic regulations, the Ministry of Civil Aviation statement said.
India, as a signatory to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Chicago Convention (1944), investigates all aircraft accidents under ICAO Annex 13 and the Aircraft (Investigation of Accidents and Incidents) Rules, 2017. The AAIB, the country’s designated authority for such investigations, began its probe following the accident involving Air India Flight AI-171.
A multidisciplinary team was constituted by the AAIB on June 13, 2025, in accordance with international protocols. The team is led by the Director General of AAIB and includes an aviation medicine specialist, an Air Traffic Control officer, and representatives from the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the investigative agency from the aircraft’s state of manufacture and design, as required.
Both the Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) and Flight Data Recorder (FDR) were successfully recovered from the crash site. One was found on the rooftop of a building on June 13, 2025, and the other was recovered from the debris on June 16, 2025, the statement from the ministry adds.
According to the release, Standard Operating Procedures were strictly followed for secure handling, storage, and transportation of the devices.
“They were placed under 24×7 police protection and monitored via CCTV in Ahmedabad to ensure their integrity.”
“On June 24, 2025, the black boxes were airlifted from Ahmedabad to Delhi by an Indian Air Force aircraft with full security. The front black box reached the AAIB Lab in Delhi at 2:00 PM along with the DG, AAIB, while the rear black box arrived at 5:15 PM with a second AAIB team,” the statement said.
According to the ministry, the data extraction process began on the evening of June 24, 2025, at the AAIB Lab, led by the DG, AAIB, along with technical experts from both AAIB and NTSB. The Crash Protection Module (CPM) from the front black box was safely retrieved, and by June 25, 2025, the memory module was successfully accessed and the data downloaded.
The analysis of the CVR and FDR data is currently in progress.
“This data will help investigators reconstruct the sequence of events leading to the accident and identify contributing factors. The aim is to enhance aviation safety and prevent future incidents.”
The Ministry emphasized that all actions taken so far have been in full compliance with both domestic laws and international obligations, and have been carried out in a time-bound manner.
Zubair Amin is a Senior Journalist at NewsX with over seven years of experience in reporting and editorial work. He has written for leading national and international publications, including Foreign Policy Magazine, Al Jazeera, The Economic Times, The Indian Express, The Wire, Article 14, Mongabay, News9, among others. His primary focus is on international affairs, with a strong interest in US politics and policy. He also writes on West Asia, Indian polity, and constitutional issues. Zubair tweets at zubaiyr.amin
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