Air India Crash: Pilot’s Father Urges Supreme Court For Independent, Court-Monitored Probe

Months after the fatal Ahmedabad Air India Crash, the 91-year-old father of late senior Air India pilot Captain Sumeet Sabharwal has approached the Supreme Court demanding a judicially monitored inquiry into the fatal Air India Flight AI-171 crash that killed 260 people in June 12 this year.

The petition, filed on October 10 jointly with the Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP), challenges the credibility of the ongoing government-led investigation and seeks an independent, court-monitored committee to probe the tragedy.

Pushkar Raj Sabharwal, father of Captain Sabharwal, the Pilot-in-Command of the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner that crashed near Ahmedabad accused the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) for conducting a “biased and opaque” investigation that focuses disproportionately on pilot error while overlooking other technical or procedural causes.

Petition Seeks Court-Monitored Committee With Independent Experts

The plea demands the formation of a “Court Monitored Committee” chaired by a retired Supreme Court judge and including independent aviation and technical experts to ensure transparency and credibility in the investigation process. The petition also calls for the closure of the current AAIB probe and transfer of all evidence and documents to the new judicially supervised inquiry.

He alleged that AAIB officials had informally suggested that his son had “cut off the fuel supply” to both engines shortly after takeoff, an accusation he called “baseless and defamatory.” Father further claimed that such statements show a pre-determined bias aimed at protecting potential lapses in aircraft maintenance or system design.

“Need a Transparent, Comprehensive Probe Beyond Pilot Error”

The petitioners, supported by the Federation of Indian Pilots representing around 5,000 commercial pilots across India argue that the current probe’s narrow focus on the dead pilots, that undermines efforts to uncover the real cause of the accident. They stress the importance of a comprehensive and technically sound investigation which examines all possible factors, including mechanical failures, fuel system anomalies, and procedural lapses in ground operations.

As of now, the Supreme Court has not listed the case for hearing. The petition reveals the growing frustration among the aviation community over what they see as a lack of transparency and accountability in India’s air crash investigations.

The June 12 Air India AI-171 Crash: India’s Deadliest Air Disaster

Air India Flight AI-171, operating a scheduled route from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick, crashed just 32 seconds after takeoff on June 12, killing 260 people, including all 12 crew members and 229 passengers. The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner hit the hostel block of B.J. Medical College in Ahmedabad, about 1.7 kilometres from the runway, resulting in 19 deaths and 67 injuries on the ground.

A preliminary AAIB report released in July revealed that both engines lost thrust seconds after takeoff when their fuel control switches moved from “RUN” to “CUTOFF”, though it did not explain how or why the switches were moved. The crash marked the first-ever fatal accident involving a Boeing 787 since the aircraft type entered service in 2011.

The final cause of the AI-171 crash remains under investigation, but with the pilot’s family now taking the matter to the Supreme Court, the push for an independent and transparent inquiry has escalated.

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