According to an Italian newspaper, Corriere della Sera, the catastrophic crash of an Air India flight in June 2025 was caused due to the pilot deliberately switching off the aircraft's engines.
The newspaper, citing sources within aviation agencies, has stated that the final investigation into the crash of Flight 171, in which 260 people were killed, stated that the fuel switches were moved to the 'cutoff' position in an act that was ‘almost certainly’ intentional by one of the pilots. The AAIB and India’s Ministry of Civil Aviation have not yet officially commented on the claims.
Data analysis conducted at the US National Transportation Safety Board laboratories in Washington is said to have provided a ‘breakthrough’ for the inquiry. The newspaper claimed that the investigators reportedly used ‘cleansed’ cockpit voice recordings to identify which pilot moved the switches. The analysis apparently ruled out a mechanical fault or an accidental error, noting that the switches—which require a specific ‘lift and turn’ motion—were engaged sequentially.
While the official report from India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) is yet to be released, the Italian daily identified the aircraft’s commander, Captain Sumeet Sabharwal, as the primary subject of the findings. The report also suggested that the captain may have been suffering from depression.
However, the claims have been met with fierce resistance from the pilot’s family and Indian aviation unions. Captain Sabharwal’s father has previously dismissed allegations regarding his son’s mental health, describing them as speculation intended to protect the airline and the aircraft manufacturer. The Airline Pilots’ Association of India has also criticised what it calls a ‘bias’ towards blaming human error over potential technical glitches.
The final report is expected to include new recommendations for the continuous psychological monitoring of flight crews.
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