The switches — which control fuel supply to engines — have been under scrutiny following AI 171 which crashed within seconds of taking off from Ahmedabad last June.
NEW DELHI: A DGCA-ordered probe by Boeing into the fuel control switch locking mechanism of the B787 Dreamliner has found “no abnormality” with the same, govt told Parliament Wednesday. The regulator had ordered this repeat examination following the crew operating an AI Dreamliner (VT-ANX) from London to Bengaluru this Feb had observed an issue with the switch after landing safely and had reported the same. These switches — which control fuel supply to engines — have been under scrutiny following AI 171 which crashed within seconds of taking off from Ahmedabad last June as its engines had run out of fuel. While why that happened is still being probed, the locking system of fuel control switches has been probed multiple times since then to ensure safety on other Dreamliners operating around the world and are still being looked at by Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) which is probing AI 171 crash. The Dreamliner is the most widely used mid-range wide body aircraft globally.“DGCA, as part of continued airworthiness, directed original equipment manufacturer (OEM) level testing of fuel control switch locking mechanism in Seattle. Detailed examination of fuel control switch including structural integrity of fuel control switch detents was carried out and no abnormality was observed,” Union minister of state for aviation Murlidhar Mohol said in a parliamentary reply Wednesday.However, the minister added that “further inspection of complete thrust control module at OEM facility is underway”. This module translates pilot inputs or autothrottle commands into precise electronic signals to control engine power.On Feb 2, 2026, the AI Dreamliner on which the crew had reported an issue with the fuel control switch after landing in Bengaluru had been grounded for checks. At that time AI had said in a statement: “We are aware that one of our pilots has reported a possible defect on the fuel control switch of a Boeing 787-8 aircraft. After receiving this initial information, we have grounded the said aircraft and are involving the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) to get the pilot’s concerns checked on a priority basis. The matter has been communicated to the aviation regulator, DGCA. Air India had checked the fuel control switches on all Boeing 787 aircraft in its fleet after a directive from the DGCA, and had found no issues.”The AI 171 crash preliminary investigation report of the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau had said: “In the cockpit voice recording, one of the pilots is heard asking the other why did he cutoff (the fuel control switch).
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The other pilot responded that he did not do so,” says.Meanwhile, on Wednesday about the AI 171 crash probe Mohol said: “There is no delay in the investigation. The timeline for a major accident investigation cannot be predicted, as it depends on several factors and is an evolving process involving multiple variables. The investigation is under progress. All probable causes and contributing factors leading to the accident are being investigated. The final investigation report (including all the findings) will be made public and published on. AAIB website after completion of the investigation.”
