New Delhi, August 18, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
The Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP) has asked the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) to hold a formal technical interaction with the pilots’ body before finalising its investigation report into the Air India AI-171 crash in Ahmedabad.
The request follows the Supreme Court’s July 28 order, which recorded the government’s assurance that inputs and suggestions submitted by the pilots’ body would be duly considered during the investigation.
In a letter to the AAIB, FIP President Capt. CS Randhawa sought formal recognition of the organisation as an aviation stakeholder, inclusion of its technical submissions in the investigation record and consideration of its observations and questions by the competent investigation team.
The FIP has also requested a personal hearing or technical meeting with the investigator-in-charge and relevant subject-matter experts before the final report is completed.
The pilots’ body said it wanted to provide technical inputs on several aspects of the investigation, including simulator testing and reconstruction, sequence-of-events analysis, crew performance and human factors, aircraft and system behaviour, and operational and regulatory oversight.
It specifically sought discussion on simulator configuration and fidelity, the assumptions and methodology used during testing, correlation with flight data, crew actions, cockpit workload, aircraft systems and warning mechanisms, besides training and procedural requirements.
The FIP has also asked the AAIB, where appropriate, to identify the relevant technical discipline or specialist who examined each substantive issue raised by the organisation.
At the same time, the pilots’ body clarified that it was not seeking confidential personal information or material that could affect the independence or confidentiality of the investigation.
“FIP’s objective is not to interfere with, influence or prejudge the independent investigation, but to ensure that relevant operational and technical perspectives are available to the investigation authority before its conclusions are finalised,” the organisation said in its letter.
The FIP requested that the proposed technical meeting be scheduled by September 15, citing the anticipated completion of the investigation by the first week of October.
The AI-171, a Boeing 787-8 operated by Air India, crashed shortly after take-off from Ahmedabad on June 12 last year. The accident resulted in 260 deaths.
FOLLOW NOW
