The Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP) has urged the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) to expand its review of electrical, electronic and avionics evidence in its ongoing investigation into the Air India AI‑171 Boeing 787 crash.
In a letter to the AAIB, FIP President Capt. CS Randhawa requested that all available technical data be examined to strengthen aviation safety. The pilots’ body cited earlier communications to the Ministry of Civil Aviation, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and the investigation agency, highlighting concerns about electrical systems on Boeing 787 aircraft and potential links to a June 2025 accident involving aircraft VT‑ANB.
FIP specifically asked the AAIB to scrutinise material submitted by the Foundation for Aviation Safety (FAS), which contains information on the aircraft’s operational history, maintenance actions, recurring anomalies and fault indications. The association noted that the AAIB had acknowledged receiving this information through a UK AAIB expert.
The federation also called for a detailed review of historical maintenance and reliability data, including technical logs, deferred defects, repetitive fault reports, component replacements and engineering corrective actions. It emphasized the importance of examining the aircraft’s integrated “More Electric Aircraft” architecture—particularly power generation, distribution, monitoring, sensor systems, flight‑management and flight‑control computers, battery systems and data networks—to identify any contributing factors to the crash.
