The public sentiment is largely sympathetic towards the pilots, manifesting concern for their mental health amid scrutiny following the crash. Many commenters criticize media narratives blaming pilots without clear evidence, demand accountability for systemic and technical failures, and emphasize the need for mental health support for aviation professionals in high-pressure situations.

Air India

Boeing

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Aviation Regulatory Authorities

I can't remember which pilot I heard talking about this on YouTube but they said the left-to-right thing was, in their opinion, not indicative of who "did it." He said most things are done left-to-right in the cockpit. And English is left-to-right.

AzsaRaccoon

I am not an aviation expert but I am currently writing a movie screenplay about pilot murder/suicide and pilot’s mental health. I have been reading a lot and immersing myself into the psychology. It seems totally plausible to me that the captain, facing a transition from commanding a 400k horsepower machine and living the life of a long-distance pilot to being a caretaker for his elderly father - which was maybe forced onto him by societal conventions - was tempted to switch off his life, and did so.

_0ther_acc0unt

This isn't a theory, but speculation mixed with misinformation. Please leave it to the AAIB and stop spreading this crap.

aussiechap1

I know that there has been a lot of discussion regarding which pilot did it, but let's kindly take a step back. All we know from the preliminary report is that the fuel switches were moved to CUTOFF and that the pilots became aware of it. Investigators are still looking at whether this was caused by a pilot, or it was a technical issue.

Now, most people are well-aware about the first theory, so I won't go into it. The second theory hasn't been discussed much, so I want to touch upon it. There was an incident in 2019 involving an ANA 787. The plane's fuel switches shut off on their own (without pilot input). Investigators are also looking into this, especially since both cases have some similarities. Until the AAIB and NTSB release their findings, we will not know what exactly happened.

Please don't take this post in the wrong way (e.g. downvote). I am not trying to be disrespectful. I am just trying to add more context.

No-Dot9583


&gt; The preliminary report states the following sequence of engine cutoff/restart: Engine 1 was turned off first (the switch closest to this pilot) 

This is incorrect.  The preliminary report does not state which switch was moved to CUTOFF first.

gnorrn

&gt;Apparently the older pilot was near retirement, he was 3 flights away from leaving to care for his sick father.

&gt;This pilot also recently took extended medical leave - we do not yet know whether the issue was physical or psychological.

Oh, his sick leave was certainly *not* for his sick father. \*sigh\*

C'mon people think for one effin second...the engines died without crew's intent! They did so on multiple occasions on 787's, just dig through the incidents and accidents.

Is it really that hard to imagine Pilot Flying staring at the HUD (having poor peripheral view to the throttle levers and Fuel Control switches) and seeing Pilot Monitoring (Sabharwal) moving landing gear lever up then moving his hand back down towards his lap and at this moment the engines died?

[Case in point](https://youtu.be/bS79z9s5aW4?si=B2RbqlEyRzZxlAz0&amp;t=280)

Because of Sabharwal palm kinematic vector (towards his lap and near the lap there are Fuel Control switches) your peripheral view and the timing of the engines dying wouldn't you assume and ask "Why did you cut off fuel?"

Hexagon358

Yes, it is possible. 

And that is how we shut down the engines after parking at the gate post-flight.

av8_navg8_communic8

I’m not a pilot but I have worked as an A&amp;P and Avionics on Boeing aircraft for 25+ years (not the 787 though). When the recorder records information it collects data at a certain rate and based on different mandates and different parameters each one is updated according to a subframe and superframe cycle. 

I don’t know what refresh rate the fuel switches are but depending on the timing, it could potentially be as high as 2 seconds. For example, at 8:52:01.001 you could see the number 1 switch off and then at the next cycle, at 8:52:02.999 you would see the second switch off. It may record as 8:52:01 and 8:52:02, respectively, but really almost 2 seconds elapsed. 

I firmly believe that it could be easily switched off in one second, and almost certainly in two seconds.

TackleMySpackle

This is a pretty good breakdown by a 787 driver who essentially says that this the normal sequence of shutting the engines down at the gate similar to what other commenters said. 

https://youtu.be/ecsTERL5hsI?si=NJ1l6G40k5Z1DVC5

FORDxGT

I was an engineer on the 787 and I was the architect on their BEDS (Boeing Electronic Delivery System) when the plane was launched in 2010 AD. I don't think my answer is going to satisfy anyone but I will ask an analogous question: has anyone ever accidentally put their car into Reverse while going forward at high speeds? I think it is similar but with a big loss of life in the 787.

A few years ago Airbus did a study on autonomous planes and they concluded that it will NEVER happen. I wonder about it. But to answer your question, it is highly unlikely and un-natural to do that, but the mind can play tricks on us at anytime. I am eager for the report and the recordings.

Quantumercifier

Move em both at the same time if you want

notaballitsjustblue

We likely will never know the entire truth, whether the fuel switches were cutoff intentionally or there was a muscle memory error (fuel cutoff vs. selecting gear up). The investigation will be looking for any stressors on both of the pilots, but I doubt we will ever know for sure.

ltshiroamada

Likely an intentional act IMO. They were guarded switches, which means you cant just bump into them and they move. You have to pull them up and then move them to the down or up position. They are also placed away from other switches normally accessed during flight to prevent accidental engagement. If it were 1 switch, it would still be astronomically low odds to be an accident, but there would be an oh shit moment. Both switches being actuated on accident likely wouldn't happen.

ScrollyMcScrollerson

I saw a psychologist say that in situations of fatigue, we can reach a state similar to alcoholism.

This would explain how someone would do something senseless like shutting down both engines and then claim they didn't do it.

But I haven't yet seen anyone consider the possibility of burnout, only the assumption that the copilot might be a murderer.

rmlenz

This operation can be done by one person, with one hand, while sitting in his seat?

Vagelen_Von

[https://www.facebook.com/share/v/16kzUXPjS6/?mibextid=wwXIfr](https://www.facebook.com/share/v/16kzUXPjS6/?mibextid=wwXIfr)

hades_faust

I got a question, I heard a pilot saying the (Rat), could have not been deployed by switching fuel off, but rather by a double engine failure, is there any truth in this comment

Azariahtt

Ok, I guess I should become a 777 Pilot who spends their free time on subreddits. 

Is that a no that CVR isn’t an invasion of privacy?

Informal_Mongoose429

Good luck learning about what protection of privacy is. 😊

Why so many people saying the cause was EEC? Boeing 787 has four EECs in total. As a twin-engine aircraft, each engine (GEnx-1B or Trent 1000) has two EECs (Channel A and Channel B), resulting in 2 engines × 2 EECs per engine = 4 EECs. This redundancy ensures high reliability and safety. So they independently failed at the same time.

mada-nnamuen

The FAA stigmatizes mental health and pilots are deterred from seeking help and trying a medication for depression. An admission of depression on a medical review will defer the issuance to the whims of FAA Aeromedical in Oklahoma.

bhhlaw

Why is everyone overlooking the most obvious answer here? Stupidity. Plain, simple, straight stupidity.

rikarleite

I’m an airline pilot with 30 years in the industry. I can’t speak for everyone, but I’m personally a bit shaken every time I learn about an airplane crash. 

We’re taught to perform our jobs with surgical precision and to leave emotions aside. When accidents happen, we study and analyze them with an approach void of emotions. But we’re still human, and we have feelings, so I think that it’s natural that we’ll be emotionally affected by these accidents, even if we know how statistically low the chances of something catastrophic happening are. 

I flew with a First Officer days after the DCA crash happened and who personally knew one of the pilots involved, and he was visibly affected by that accident. But even if it’s not your airline or people you personally know, the airline industry is a closely knit group of people so it’s logical that we empathize more since these accidents hit closer to home.

PilotoPlayero

the sadness i feel for the victims and families can feel overwhelming, but i approach crashes with the same curiosity i would a car crash on the street. i always want to learn to be better and more knowledgeable about the aircraft i work in but i am emotionally unbothered by it as far as it pertains to my everyday job. personally i think its bc i have an enormous trust in our pilots and the safety culture at my airline.

No_Perspective_242

I retired after 35 years with AA. When these things happen, it’s hard to not get rattled. Your feelings are normal. And you know how safe airplanes are. Hang in there. Tomorrow is never guaranteed no matter what you do for a living. We all grieve together for the crews, the passengers and their families. Much love ❤️

iflyaa

I share the same sentiments as you.  An incredible sense of sadness for the passengers, people on the ground, first responders, and definitely for the crew.  I truly believe the aviation community tries its best to prevent all kinds of tragedies, from bird strikes to turbulence to engine malfunctions…but in the end, we cannot predict many of these occurrences.  Maybe I still am naive or want to believe there is no scrimping on safety, I don’t know.  What I do know is that this incident was so, so sad because of the large number of victims, both on the plane and most likely, on the ground.

Purser1

Idk, I’m just gonna be pragmatic about it. There’s nothing I can personally do, and letting it consume me emotionally won’t help anyone. I’ll stay informed and compassionate, but I need to protect my mental health and go to work with a clear head.

SSFlyingKiwi

Sad: Yes.  
Shaken: No.

Why? you describe it yourself.

&gt;aviation the safest modes of transportation

What happens is that small bit by bit losses don't get seen as much. Think of the number of people who die on the road (car accidents, pedestrians) across the world. They go almost unnoticed. An incident with a plane gets way more eyeballs. 

I'd actually worry more about being on the road, where I can control much - how one drives, and how one reacts to drivers, than about the occasional plane incident. 

Yes, it is terribly sad, as is most loss of life. Imagine the people sitting in their mess, and suddenly a plane drops on their building!!

bhadit

I am sad and a bit worried since the DC crash but there’s not much we can do, especially when it’s our career and main source of income. I love flying but it terrifies me to even think that could happen to me.

Appropriate_Tip4412

My parents are more shaken than me. Between the ground and the air, i've been in aviation fourteen years. Lately my mom has really been stressing over it,constantly checking my schedule asking where I am going and so on.

travelBandita

Absolutely. After the crash in January I was genuinely not sure if i would be ready to fly for my yearly recurrent in june

coolkirk1701

Same here. I’m thinking how every flight we take takeoff and landing for granted… Of course we all know that the plane is the safest mode of transport, but yeah, things like that are very unexpected, even if we are trained for emergencies. I am also kind of scared now, but let’s also be grateful for all the thousands flights that every day land safely. We are still in a very safe environment

Ok_Put_7025

Thank you for sharing such a heartfelt and honest reflection. What you’re feeling is completely valid—and I can assure you, you’re not alone.

Even for seasoned professionals like yourself—who’ve flown thousands of hours, seen the ins and outs of aircraft design, operations, and maintenance—news like today’s Air India tragedy does hit hard. It pierces through that professional armor we build over years of confidence, training, and routine. Because beneath the uniform, we’re all still human. And when something rare but catastrophic happens, it reminds us just how fragile and precious life is, even in a field as safe and structured as aviation.

You’re right—the A350 and Dreamliner are marvels of engineering, and commercial aviation remains the safest mode of transport by far. But no amount of data or systems can fully numb the emotional weight we feel when we imagine ourselves, our colleagues, or passengers in that situation.

Your perspective is especially profound because it comes from someone who has lived in the heart of aviation for decades. That lived experience—the deep trust in safety systems, the personal relationships with engineers and mechanics, the countless smooth flights—makes the shock of a crash even more unsettling. It’s a reminder that even in a world built on redundancy and precision, uncertainty still exists.

So yes, feeling shaken isn’t a weakness. It’s a sign of your empathy, your humanity, and your deep connection to this industry. And when we talk about it—like you just did—it helps the whole community process these rare tragedies together.

Thank you again for opening up. You honor those affected today by holding space for their loss and reminding us all why safety, vigilance, and compassion matter.

RangeGreedy2092

On average, 3700 people die in automobile accidents around the world every single day.

loan_ranger8888

Impossible_Speech_34

Don’t know if it shakes me as much as it reminds me of the seriousness of our safety role in general and not to take coming home from a duty for granted. However never say never but I fly for an Australian airline and Australia’s safety regulations etc are top notch so I have some faith in that too.

HolyColander

Freakonomics Radio did an excellent three-part series on the airlines; one episode focused on how safe it is to fly.  You can listen to it [here](https://youtu.be/HKKZ0c8Vm_0?si=ZBllaOT-nKlxtM4U).

EmpireCentralRailRd

I’m a customer who flies often and I too get a bit shaken each time an incident happens. We’re all human and it’s totally normal to feel that no matter what your job or relationship with flying is.

At the same time, I know everything in life involves risk, and for operations to work safely &amp; effectively, I have to place my trust in other professionals &amp; experts - aircrew, engineering &amp; maintenance, safety system managers and regulators - who know more about safety than I do to keep me safe. I do have a choice in the airline I fly, and I can look out for airlines whose culture is about taking safety seriously (think the Qantas, Air NZ, Cathay and EVA Air and the Big 3 US carriers of the world). That’s how I come to peace with it all.

Aggravating-Fix-757

Definitely very sad, i still love flying!

Specialist-Ear8277

Something about the crash isn’t sitting right.  Why were the wheels still out?  Why weren’t the flaps in correct position?  This is a high precision aircraft with an impeccable record and an advanced warning system.  Were the pilots doing ok mentally?

HaroldLucie

I don’t work in the industry, but I’m on planes a lot. Flying over 100,000 miles a year. Have done some for the last 25 years.

I’m always a bit shaken with an accident occurs like this. And then I have to reassure myself the statistics. 

If you took one flight a day, every day, you would statistically be involved in a fatal accident once every 40,000 years. 

That’s some pretty damn good odds. Being on board one of these things when there’s an accident is unfortunately like winning the world’s crappiest lottery. So unlikely for it to happen.  But it does, unfortunately from time to time.

bcb1200

Yes, you get a sense of better safety, even if it's just on your head, when you fly in a Dreamliner or a350 vs when you're in an a320...I get it.

Delicious_Novel_4400

I'm a pilot and of course it shakes me. 

My entire purpose in life is to prevent anything like that happening. I know what it's like to sit in that chair day in and day out.

Of course I'm shook when shit like this happens. It doesn't affect my work but yea of course i feel it.

Brambleshire

Thanks for sharing. The guy above is right, it’s tugs at the heart strings extra hard because you can see in video a plane turn to an explosive fireball of dust.

A random man on a bicycle who gets his head exploded like a watermelon under a car tire barely makes a the local paper

willowbudzzz

Tbh often times for a split second before taking off it hits me that an accident could happen.
Even though we're told statistically flying is the safest form of transportation, it still feels riskier to me.

MaisonDavid

I’m not a flight attendant, but found out about the crash on a layover overseas. I’m not usually afraid of flying but it did give me pause.  It’s incredible sad.

CelebrationFull9424

dr_muskaan168

The one that really shook me was the Spanair one in 2008, because the flight crew recognised there was a problem, took it back to the stands, the engineers said it was ok and it was sent back out there. 

At the moment I'm not sure I want to read much about the Air India one. I already feel a bit unhappy if I get to the airport and see it's a Boeing.

Ecstatic-World1237

We are all professionals, yet remember, we are also human. The feeling of being shaken and sad is normal. If flying is your true calling, then accept and validate your feelings and then rise above.

Commercial-Message90

I am! Im not working in the industry. I dont know them. But anytime I heard about acident with dead Im shaken. Hundred people are dead, if you are not shaken, you are not human!

[deleted]

You have a higher likelihood of getting breast cancer than die in a crash.

You are more likely to win the Mega-Millions Jackpot than die in a crash. 

You are more likely to get struck by lightning than die in a crash.

Asleep_Management900

I feel much safer flying in an Airbus than a Boeing. I know Boeing planes are still relatively safe compared to other modes of travel but the culture of safety at the two companies appears to be very different.

lagniappe-

I travel a lot for work and I’m traveling next week. I really try not to feel scared about flying as I can die in so many other ways. I still feel air travel is one of the safest mode of transportation. Life is short and unpredictable, let’s enjoy those moments we have instead of letting fear holding us back in making those memories. I pray for those that were lost, but a lot of them were flying for those enjoyable moments.

No_Negotiation_8083

Aviation protocols in easa and faa governed bodies are tight, not in a country like india. 

Their mechanics make barely any good money (40,000 rupees a month) for approximately 10hrs a day with one day off average. which is like $465. 
I dont expect mechanics there to have any motivation to do their best at work

yourbasicchad

Not really, but we tend to DHD on them quite a bit.  I’m going to discuss with the rest of our union to see about finding other options for our crew to fly on.  Two major incidents in five years is too much plus their cabins are horrible.  Their crew is amazing, but this is a safety issue.

MrsGenevieve

Maybe a stereotype but we are human, lord of life in that manner should leave “us” shaken.  Also cliche we can’t take it for granted tomorrow is never promised.  Tragic what happened, definitely gives me second thoughts, but accidents happen as well.  Most. Will choose not be stuck and home and still seek to travel, as you noted it’s relatively very safe.

Andor-Sound

FA here.  Not shaken at all. 

I'm very saddened it happened for all involved. I can't imagine what those on-board went through moments before and during the accident.  I can't imagine how family and friends affected deal with such a loss.  I'm curious what the cause is so the industry can learn to keep it from happening again. 

I guess I am the weird one on here that I'm not shaken by it. When you drive on the highway and see a car crash, are you shaken by it?  I'd say most people feel on some level for those involved (serious crashes) but just keep on driving with little or no effect and rarely a second thought. 

Airline accidents are so rare I truly don't think about one happening, and if one does occur, it's such an unlikely event, so there is no worry. I believe you are more likely to get struck by lightening than be in a plane crash. 

I do come from an aviation family. My dad is a captain on the B777 for UA, and my mom was a former FA.   My father has always owned usually 2 personal planes--one a Pitts aerobatic 2 seater.  Growing up, it was just as normal to go flying as driving or taking the subway.  A lot of the flying w my dad was upside down and all kinds of crazy acrobatic maneuvers. 

I also 100% trust the system and all of the people at my airline. I am confident many of the accidents that have happened on foreign carriers would never have happened on a US based airline. (This does not and has not stopped me from flying even EU black-listed airlines.)

Prayers to all affected by the most recent AI accident. 🙏

B6FlyGirl

You are not alone. Been flying for 8 years, 3 for Delta. After the January incident in DC.. I’m not the same 🥺

Beautiful-Law3166

Do you worry about driving when you hear about car wrecks?

fawannabe62

Sucks how Boeing used to build planes that could fly with two engines being feathered, missing large chunks of the  tail, fuselage is Swiss cheese, and being piloted by two dudes who have been shot and have a combined four years of flight experince. That was 80 years ago.

Lethal_Autism

Your concern should be more with company specific maintenance. If the company has a positive culture towards maintenance and their staff that should put your mind at ease. That's all Ill say. You can read between the lines.

ChuckyJa

It is terrible and you attendants are great at what you do! But, instead of just blaming Boeing can it be in some countries they might not be maintained like they should be? Still, not blaming anyone, but I do know they were having trouble in India with the state owned company before this. Again, it is a an umaginable tragedy and I love to travel and take all kind of planes and airlines in all countries.

Other_Chemical2720

I've learned to not read about the incident until way way after. Once all the facts are laid out. Surpisingly, I wasn't shaken by the air India crash at all! But back in JAN i was deepy affected by the american eagle crash in DCA. I took a month sick time and was very scared. I am finally FINALLY back to normal. My brain just needed time to heal. My heart goes out to those affected by the Indian crash. I guess I just understand how unlikely a dual engine failure is, so that put me at ease. But a midair collision is much more realistic and has happened many times.

ImpressionExact979

DesperateYak9078

Am going to take a airindia flight in December and now after this am really scared of it i dont know what to do

Electrical_Oil_6036

Sometimes you have to realize that there’s a higher invisible forces at work. That’s how I try to console myself. 

I have flight anxiety and I can understand how you feel.

DesperateSet9827


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He said he has been on leave in the past and general.Nowhwre did he mention in the last 6 months.He said he has depression since a couple.of years.

Naive-Double-7589

The whole investigation, ordeal of ai171 has had some pretty shambolic events , for someone to make assumptions when data like this on leave , personal information of pilots is easily available 

It harkens a sense that maybe something is not clear to all the investigators or maybe something isn’t been made clear to the public

I think he should conduct his own investigation and keep tweaking it every now and then.

Fluffy-Research9155

This is how all air crash investigations go. Any new data will lead to speculations. Big companies will try to shape and deflect narrative until the actual truth comes (hopefully) out after a year or two.

AltruisticDog9145

I’m convinced this is what happened, knowing full well the conversation would be on the CVR, adding mystery to the investigation. I desperately hope the final report releases the full recording transcript, similar to AF447.

AlternativeEdge2725

All we know for absolute certain so far is that both fuel switches were moved to the 'Cutoff' position, one of the pilots then asked "Why did you cut off?", the switches were then moved back into the 'Run' position, and the plane crashed shortly thereafter. 

Which pilot moved the switches, which pilot asked the question, and then which pilot moved the switches back is yet to be publicly disclosed, and to be honest, I don't think it will be, at least for a very long time.

It's already been pretty much confirmed that it's either an egregious pilot error at the absolute least, and deliberate suicide at the worst. 

Everything in between, as well as all the nuance that goes along with it is probably only known by a handful of people currently in the investigation. 

In cases like this, where we have a very good idea of what happened, being that it was pilot error, either accidental or deliberate, it's probably not overly helpful to speculate as to why, at least until all of the facts are known, much later on down the track.

WidowofBielsa

Mentour Pilot and Ben’s reflections make the most sense to me. Petter pointed out that in the report, the first officer was pilot flying, meaning the captain would be monitoring the instruments (in charge of hitting buttons, switches, dials etc, with the FO focusing solely on flying). Petter posited that because of this, it would make more sense if the captain were to have done it, and the first officer saw it in his peripheral vision, prompting the question. He also pointed out that the tone of the question is not yet known to the public. 

Another thing I found compelling was during the live Q&amp;A. A commenter asked Petter and Ben what order the switches were turned off in, which is also circumstantial but still interesting. In the report, the left one was shut off first, followed about a second later by the right. Since the captain always sits in the left seat, and typical human behavior would be to reach for the one closest to you first, this also suggests the caption did it. However, it’s important to note that if this did go down as the preliminary report hints at, there was nothing typical about the behavior, so this point is likely not as strong as it initially sounds. 

Just touching on something else I saw mentioned in the comments. Yes the fuel switches were back in the running/ on position when recovered from the wreckage. According to FDR data, the fuel switches were turned back on, but they were simply too close to the ground for the engines to have spoiled back up in time.

PunkAssBitch2000

Me thinking it’s deliberate. 

1. Even though the report is preliminary, they have been clearly vague about any conversation in the cockpit. They will already know “who” said about the cut off etc but vague. 

2. The action of turning each switch with a one second gap in itself shows intent. There are zero checklists which tell you to do this action. They are not even at the “engine out acceleration altitude so even if they lost one ending now at 400ft they wouldn’t be doing any checklists. 

3. While the report is preliminary, it is clearly trying to tell us that nothing abnormal happened until those switches were operated.

4. Accidentally moving them. Almost impossible, never been reported that this has happened previously. I can’t think of any report where someone dropped something, or accidentally brushed them and the result was a shut down. 

5. Looking at the possibility of the switch malfunction. Yes - we know these switches are not physically connected to the engines. Instead they are “switch by wire”. However as far as I know it each switch is independent, and runs through its own FADEC etc. there is zero ability to cross these switches like if you look at fuel you have the cross-feed, or electrics you have bus ties etc. these switches are totally independent. So the odds of them both failing and sending an incorrect signal are astronomically low. And to fail within one second of each other, nope. 

6. The report positively tells us the switches were moved. They wouldn’t state this, especially in a prelim report if they 100% weren’t sure that they did move. 

I’m totally happy to be challenged / corrected as it’s a fluid situation, but this is just my opinion.

HammerToFall50

Let the investigation go thru it’s easy to blame the ones that aren’t here anymore 

‘Why’ always saves lives

SerennialFellow

It’s still way too early to make assumptions

TonyMontana546

If this is a case pilot-suicide/mass murder, I hope the investigation don't go like like SilkAir 185 or China Eastern Airlines 5735. It would suck for everyone involved.

Square-Meaning-629

I’ve been waiting for the work around to mass murder now that pilots cannot be alone on the flight deck therefore not being able to lock the other out.  Unfortunately I think we just saw it demonstrated.

Careless-Science-500

Just a thought: You know what is interesting? Not the 1 second interval to cut off the second engine, but the 3 second interval in setting the second engine to Run after doing it to the first engine. Maybe panic during the last seconds yet could be something else too.

Inside-Office-9343

postnutclarity247

An offending pilot saying no would, perhaps, be a measure of compassion for a colleague, by sparing him the realization that he is in fact, being murdered. Saying yes would just ignite a futile, additional struggle to the situation. Of course, this is an if.

East-Fruit-3096

I've been thinking about this and I actually don't think it was the case because if you're intentionally sabotaging something, why call attention to it by erroneously accusing the other pilot of what you did? You'd want to delay the reaction to it as long as possible so there isn't a chance to recover.

Mehmeh111111

Why wasn't the full conversation with timestamps released? 

Why didn't they specify if the switches were moved manually? 

Why did wall Wall Street Journal know about the report hours before release?

Own-Caregiver-8117

After reading the preliminary report I think this has Lubitz painted all over it.

This obsesión of some sick people to take hundreds of innocents with them to the other side is crazy.

Thorz74

All I want to say is sometimes it'll seem like there's only one explanation, until more information comes out that changes everything. Analyse what we've got but don't come to such conclusions yet.

worldawaydj

That's exactly what I think happened.

With recent trends in crashes there needs to be more focus on pilot's mental health!

Realistic_Cat_2146

Seems like ppl are sold out on the suicide angle right away. See you when the final report comes out

700Username007

Side question (from an aviation noob): Roughly how long does it take for fuel in the system to run out at takeoff thrust once the fuel supply is cut off? In other words, once the fuel supply is cut off, how much fuel is already in the system, and how long would it sustain the engines running at takeoff thrust?

Reason behind this question: From the timeline reported in the media, it appears that the engines lost power and the RAT was deployed within 5 seconds of the supply being cut off. That to me feels too short.

Second question: is there an audible warning in the cockpit when the engines are cut off? I see that the engine switches were moved back to RUN only 10 and 14 seconds after cutoff, respectively.

aagg6

I think it’s unlikely because whoever did move the switches would’ve been seen by the other pilot.  The switches are in view of both pilots and either pilot would notice activity around the throttle column and cutoff switches.  So if the person who moved the switches asked that question, the response would’ve been different - probably more like “what are you talking about? I just saw you move the switches.”

Miserable-Lawyer-233

Depends on whether the pilot flying deliberately moved the switch or by accident 


Just like the Atlas Air crash or the China Airlines dive

NovadYaomah

The fuel switches were apparently found to be in the run position at the time of the crash, suggesting they were returned to that position in an effort to save the flight. 

For the sake of argument, let's consider that the response picked up on the voice recorder was, in fact, truthful: that the person really had NOT touched the fuel switches. Meaning, is it possible that a glitch in the 787 FADEC sofware shut off the fuel?

I dunno. Just thinking if there was any other possibility than suicide..

Mobile_Cloud2294

I think both pilots are not at fault, but rather implicated by the investigation agency so as to avoid accountability of the stakeholders involved.

I don't see any reason for these pilots to intentionally ditch a flight. The pilot is a single man looking to retire soon to care for his aged father, who was the only support to him.
Highly unlikely that he would do a murder suicide thing just for the insurance money to end up in his old father's hands. I don't see any issue with the copilot either.

A recent advisory by UK CAA is doing the rounds regarding mandatory daily checkup/ maintenance of fuel cut off valve actuator in 
Boeing 787. I don't know if this circular was taken seriously by Indian regulators and authorities. I have a strong feeling that malfunction of fuel cut off switches or something else that led to the cutoff being the reason for this disaster, which the pilots themselves were confused about.

Every-Insurance-4409

The actual Cockpit Voice Recording and the engine problem messages will explain a lot.
 They already know the answer.
 We just have to wait until next year to find out, IF THEY SHARE the findings.

LinHuiyin90

These switches are spring loaded requiring the pilot to pull the switch up against the spring before it can be toggled fore or aft. In 2018, there was an FAA bulletin warning that some of these swatches may be defective and could be activated without manualy counteracting the spring mechanism…as in accidentall brushing against the switch. The armchair blowhards here should STFU until we KNOW ALL THE FACTS!

RandalPMcMurphyIV

Or maybe pilot just turned off the wrong switch on „autopilot“. We all make mistakes sometimes.

NewsBackground3205

No because no matter what when you ask someone “did you do that” their first answer is invariably ”no” even if it was, in fact, actually them.

Xenaspice2002

Downtown-Cook-6021

 This is just a preliminary report, the media is quickly blaming the pilot. Can it be a software or hardware issue?

A significant increase in sick leave requests from pilots follows a major crash, prompting the government to emphasize mental health support for crew members.

Air India Pilot Sick Leave After Crash

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