Air India plane Crash: SC asks Centre to file report on procedural protocol followed
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta tells Bench led by CJI Surya Kant that the AAIB probe is in final stages
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Wednesday told the Supreme Court that the Aircraft Accident Investigation Board (AAIB) investigation into the June 12, 2025, Air India plane crash at Ahmedabad was at its fag end.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta informed a Bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi on behalf of the Centre and the DGCA that the AAIB probe was in final stages and some parts of the probe needed to be carried out in foreign countries.
The Bench asked the Centre to file a brief report on the procedural protocol followed so far in the probe.
The June 12, 2025 crash of the London-bound Air India Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft had claimed the lives of 260 people, including those of both pilots and crew members. Former Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani was also among those killed.
Mehta urged the Bench to list three related petitions on the matter together after three weeks for a comprehensive hearing.
"Let us see the result of the AAIB probe and then we will see whether a court of inquiry will be needed or not," the CJI said, posting the three petitions for hearing after three weeks.
Mehta assured the Bench that the details of the inquiry will be shared with them.
The Bench said the AAIB's role was to determine the cause of the crash and not to impute motive.
On behalf of petitioner Safety Matters Foundation, advocate Prashant Bhushan said three other Boeing 787s had met with similar incidents and the Centre had not filed any response to the pleas.
The CJI asked Bhushan not to give much credence to unverified media reports and said, "Last week, it was said that the Dreamliner from London to Delhi had some problem with the fuel switch. Later, it was said from the official account of the airline that it was perfectly fine. But this incident of course was very unfortunate. Let us be very conservative also on making comments on a particular airline. The Dreamliner was once hailed as the best."
Bhushan said more than 8,000 pilots are saying that the Boeing 787 is not safe and should be grounded. He pointed out that five members in the AAIB inquiry team are from the DGCA.
"The only way to satisfy Bhushan is to appoint a committee headed by Bhushan himself," Mehta said.
The Bench asked the Centre to file a report on the procedural protocol followed so far in the probe.
