The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has appointed veteran pilot and former Air India Director of Operations Captain RS Sandhu as a domain expert in the ongoing investigation into the deadly Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad last month, sources confirmed to the PTI on Sunday.
Sandhu, who was also a designated examiner for the Boeing 787-8 fleet at Air India, had taken delivery of the now-crashed 787-8 plane — VT-ANB — in 2013.
On June 12, Air India`s Boeing 787-8 aircraft en route to London Gatwick from Ahmedabad crashed into a building soon after takeoff, killing 260 people, including 19 people on the ground. Out of the 242 people onboard, one passenger survived.
On July 12, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) released its preliminary report into the fatal crash.
“AAIB has onboarded seasoned aviator RS Sandhu in the ongoing investigation of the Air India Boeing 787-8 plane crash in Ahmedabad last month,” one of the sources told PTI.
According to sources, the AAIB approached Sandhu to lend his expertise to the complex investigation. Sandhu is also the founder of Aviazione, an aviation consultancy, and played a key role in the Tata Group airline integration efforts following the conglomerate’s acquisition of Air India, reported the PTI.
The AAIB had earlier released its preliminary report into the crash on July 12. However, pilot unions including the Airline Pilots’ Association of India (ALPA India) had expressed concern over the lack of subject matter experts on the probe team, calling for their inclusion to ensure a comprehensive and informed investigation.
The five-member team leading the inquiry is headed by Sanjay Kumar Singh, 56, and is supported by specialists in piloting, engineering, aviation medicine, psychology, and flight data analysis, according to the AAIB, the news agency reported.
Further details regarding other domain experts involved in the investigation have not yet been made public.
Earlier this week, the AAIB had said that it is too early to reach any firm conclusions about the recent Air India plane crash and has asked the public and media not to spread rumours or unverified information.
(with PTI inputs)
