Date & Time:
Jun 12, 2025 at 1338 LT
Type of aircraft:
Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner
Operator:
Registration:
VT-ANB
Flight Phase:
Takeoff (climb)
Flight Type:
Scheduled Revenue Flight
Survivors:
Yes
Site:
City
Schedule:
Ahmedabad - London
MSN:
36279/26
YOM:
2013
Flight number:
AI171
Country:
India
Region:
Asia
Crew on board:
12
Crew fatalities:
12
Pax on board:
230
Pax fatalities:
229
Other fatalities:
19
Total fatalities:
260
Captain / Total hours on type:
8596
Copilot / Total hours on type:
1128
Circumstances:
The airplane, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, flight AI171, departed Ahmedabad-Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport on a regular schedule service to London-Gatwick, carrying 230 passengers and 12 crew members. After takeoff from runway 23, the airplane climbed to an altitude of 625 feet with the undercarriage still down. Then it started to descend, first in a relative flat attitude, then nosed up (increasing the angle of attack) until it collided with several residential buildings located near Ghoda Camp Road, some 1,500 metres from the runway end, bursting into flames. The airplane was totally destroyed by impact forces and a post crash fire. Weather conditions at the time of the accident were considered as good. It appears that the crew issued a mayday call shortly after liftoff. Few hours after the crash, local authorities confirmed that one passenger survived while 241 other occupants were killed as well as 19 people on the ground. 67 other people on the ground were injured. Runway 23 is 3'600 metres long and it seems that the rotation was completed very late. An analysis of the Airport CCTV shows that the airplane ceased to climb about 12 seconds after rotation, and that the final impact occurred some 30 seconds after liftoff. It appears that the RAM Air Turbine (RAT) was deployed at the time of the accident, suggesting issues with engines.
Probable cause:
In the below preliminary report, its is reported that the aircraft achieved the maximum recorded airspeed of 180 Knots IAS at about 08:08:42 UTC and immediately thereafter, the Engine 1 and Engine 2 fuel cutoff switches transitioned from RUN to CUTOFF position one after another with a time gap of 01 sec. The Engine N1 and N2 began to decrease from their take-off values as the fuel supply to the engines was cut off. In the cockpit voice recording, one of the pilots is heard asking the other why did he cutoff. The other pilot responded that he did not do so.
Final Report:
VT-ANB.pdf1.57 MB
