India's aviation regulator has concluded that no defect exists in the fuel control switches of a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner operated by Air India, following a detailed inspection prompted by pilot concerns during an engine start procedure in London.
Pilot Report Triggers Safety Checks
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation confirmed that the issue was raised concerning Air India flight AI132, which operated from London Heathrow to Bengaluru between Sunday and Monday. During engine start preparations, the flight crew observed that one of the two fuel control switches did not remain securely latched in the run position when light vertical pressure was applied.
According to official reports, the switch only latched correctly and remained stable on the third attempt. The crew physically verified that it was fully and positively latched in the run position before completing the flight without any further incident.
Comprehensive Inspection Findings
Following the aircraft's arrival in Bengaluru, the pilots documented their observation in the post-flight defect report. Air India promptly informed the regulator and referred the matter to Boeing for technical assessment.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation conducted thorough post-flight inspections in accordance with Boeing's established procedures. These examinations determined that both left and right fuel control switches were completely serviceable.
Technical Assessment Details
The regulator's statement clarified that the locking tooth or pawl mechanism was fully seated and not slipping from run to cutoff positions. When full force was applied parallel to the base plate during testing, the switch remained securely in place.
Importantly, no abnormal engine parameters, caution messages, warnings, or system alerts were recorded during the engine start procedure at Heathrow or at any subsequent point during the flight.
Operating Procedure Clarification
The regulator did note that if the switch was handled incorrectly, it could potentially move. Applying external force in an improper direction caused the switch to transition easily from run to cutoff, due to the angular base plate design that allows slippage when pressed incorrectly with finger or thumb pressure.
However, officials stressed that this behaviour does not indicate any manufacturing defect when the switches are operated according to approved procedures. The inspections covered the switches from the affected aircraft, a replacement unit, and components from another plane, with all demonstrating pull-to-unlock forces within specified limits.
Fleet-Wide Review and Historical Context
Reuters reported that Air India has initiated re-checks of fuel switches across its entire Dreamliner fleet following the pilot's report. The airline operates thirty-three Boeing 787 jets in total.
This scrutiny occurs against the backdrop of an ongoing investigation into last June's tragic Boeing 787-8 crash in Ahmedabad. That London-bound Air India flight crashed less than a minute after take-off, resulting in 241 fatalities among the 242 people on board, plus nineteen casualties on the ground.
Previous Incident Investigation
A preliminary report released in July indicated that both fuel control switches had moved from run to cutoff shortly after take-off during the Ahmedabad incident, causing both engines to shut down. However, investigators have not yet established how this movement occurred.
The cockpit voice recorder captured one pilot questioning why the switches had been moved, with the other responding that he had not flipped them. Following that preliminary report, the United States aviation regulator affirmed that fuel control switches on Boeing aircraft remain safe.
Industry Expert Confidence
Aviation consultant and former air accident investigator Tim Atkinson expressed confidence in the switch design when speaking to the BBC. "These switches are designed with one purpose in mind, and that is that they cannot be moved unintentionally," he stated.
"There is no doubt in my mind that the design is good. I would be astonished to find it had some kind of latent defect," Atkinson added, reinforcing the regulator's findings about the equipment's reliability.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation has subsequently advised Air India to circulate Boeing's recommended operating procedure for fuel switches to all crew members, ensuring proper handling techniques are universally understood and applied.
