The crash of Air India Flight AI 171 will remain a chilling memory etched into the hearts of the bereaved and a scar on the public conscience for years to come.
Over 270 lives—including men, women, and children—were lost in a matter of seconds. No amount of money, no compensation, can ever bring them back.
But the tragedy extended beyond the passengers on board. The aircraft slammed into a building just beyond the airport’s perimeter wall—ironically, a doctor’s residential mess where many were having lunch.
Several medical professionals perished, and others working in the premises are feared dead. Injuries were reported among others who happened to be in the vicinity. The toll of this catastrophe keeps rising.
Eyewitnesses from a nearby residential building, spared by what they believe was a deliberate last-second maneuver by the pilots, have hailed them as heroes.
They think that the pilots, in their final moments, steered the failing aircraft away from their complex, knowing that a crash into a densely populated residential structure would have multiplied the tragedy.
Indeed, questions have emerged about the aircraft’s behavior in those final seconds. Typically, an aircraft gains altitude immediately after takeoff.
But this ill-fated Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, headed for London, barely ascended before it began a sharp and fatal descent. For many ordinary observers, the trajectory of the plane suggests either a sudden power failure or a fuel supply issue to the engines.
And yet, in his first public response, Air India and Tata Sons Chairman N. Chandrasekaran firmly stated there were no known issues with the aircraft.
Speaking to Times Now, he described the event as “a tough situation where I have no words to console the families,” while affirming that Air India will stand by the victims and their kin.
Chandrasekaran emphasized that Flight AI-171 had a clean maintenance history. The right engine, he stated, had been newly installed just three months ago in March 2025.
The left engine was last serviced in 2023 and was due for its next scheduled check in December 2025. According to him, both engines were cleared with no prior red flags.
“Dreamliners have been operating for a long time. This specific aircraft had no safety concerns raised. None at all,” he stressed.
But therein lies the question.
If there were no snags in the engines, no maintenance lapses, no human errors evident at the outset—what exactly caused this brand-new, well-maintained aircraft to nosedive barely a minute after takeoff?
Both pilots were experienced professionals. Captain Sabharwal logged over 11,500 flight hours, while First Officer Clive Kundar had more than 3,400. “They were among our best,” said Chandrasekaran.
The black box and flight data recorder, currently in the hands of investigators, are expected to shed light on what happened in those fateful moments.
Meanwhile, speculation continues on social media and within aviation circles, ranging from manufacturing defects in Boeing’s 787 line to sabotage, to issues with outsourced maintenance.
Chandrasekaran directly refuted rumors linking Turkish Technic to the plane’s upkeep, saying that none of Air India’s 33 Dreamliners are maintained by them. Most, he said, are serviced by AI Engineering Services Limited or Singapore’s SIA Engineering.
He also dismissed doubts about Boeing’s practices, citing the aircraft’s extensive global use and Air India’s internal assessments, which reportedly found no anomalies.
Despite these assurances, the public remains skeptical. For many, the images of the wreckage, the mourning families, and the haunting testimonies of near-miss survivors demand something more than technical reports—they demand accountability.
As the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation probe the crash, Chandrasekaran has urged the public and media to refrain from premature conclusions.
A preliminary report is expected within 30 days.
But until then, the question that echoes louder than any statement remains:
If nothing was wrong, why did AI-171 fall from the sky?