DC Edit | No Shortcuts in Aviation Safety

Aviation safety is not just a process but also a moral duty that must be fulfilled every day so that pilots are not forced to rely solely on astronomical odds against dying in an air crash.

It will take several months for the final report of the investigation into the Ahmedabad crash of the Air India Dreamliner on June 12, 2025 to be published. Meanwhile, the issue of a glitch in the form of involuntary movement of the fuel control buttons has come to the fore again, with a pilot reporting such movement on the Dreamliner flying from India to London.

The DGCA appears to have suggested that the action of the crew may have moved the switch from the ‘working’ position to the ‘cutting’ position. Calling on Boeing to distribute to crew members the recommended procedure for performing the transition could be part of the safety procedures. But, inevitably or not, there seems to be an acceptance of the belief that the manufacturer is always right and that the pilots are the ones moving the switches.

It shouldn’t take a year of research to know how these keys moved from Ahmedabad to the ill-fated plane that could have closed the case. Manufacturers cannot set aside field data that may show they are not infallible in ensuring the onboard safety of their aircraft.

Pilots, assisted by air traffic controllers, make mistakes, as we recently saw when two taxiing planes scraped together on their right wings in Mumbai, which operates one of the country’s busiest airports. But assuming pilot error before thoroughly examining every unusual event in aviation is an error that should not be allowed to occur, as it would undermine safety, which is primarily the responsibility of the manufacturer.

The sooner we solve the mystery of the movable fuel switches that need to be pulled up before being pushed into the cut-off position, the better. How reliable is an airplane if unusual movement of the fuel switches occurs? What can be done to control this aspect of flying an advanced fly-by-wire must be investigated if the manufacturer is to regain the overall confidence of passengers and crew.