New Delhi: Both Boeing and Honeywell knew that the fuel lock system on the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner that was delivered to India was “faulty”. This defect allowed an inadvertent cutoff of fuel supply and a total loss of thrust necessary to propel the Dreamliner—this is what families of four passengers killed in the 12 June Air India crash have said in a lawsuit, accusing both companies of “gross negligence”.
At least 275 people died when AI 171, a Boeing 787-8 bound for London, crashed just outside the airport in Ahmedabad.
The lawsuit filed Tuesday at the Delaware Superior Court alleges that the accident took place due to “faulty fuel switches”, referring to a 2018 Federal Aviation Administration Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin, which pointed out that operators of Boeing 737 had told Boeing that the locking mechanism on their fuel control switches was disengaged.
However, after the Ahmedabad crash, the Federal Aviation Administration had said that there did not appear to be a mechanical problem with the Boeing 787-8’s fuel control unit. Boeing too said that their fuel lock systems are safe.
But the lawsuit quotes the 2018 Federal Aviation Administration Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin which showed that operators had informed Boeing about the “faulty” fuel control switches.
The locking feature (which was disengaged) leaves room for inadvertent cut off of fuel. All Boeing 787s, including the Air India Dreamliner that crashed in Ahmedabad had the same locking mechanism.
The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau’s (AAIB) preliminary accident report also confirmed that the Dreamliner had the same component (4TL837-3D). The preliminary report mentioned that Air India informed investigators that the suggested inspection did not take place for AI 171 since it was not mandatory.
Post the crash, DGCA had also asked airline operators to inspect the fuel switch locking mechanism in all Boeing 737s and 787s. Air India then announced that no issues were found during the Fuel Control Switch (FCS) locking mechanism checks.
Experts that ThePrint spoke to said that there is little to no room for fuel switches to be cut off inadvertently.
“Honeywell’s fuel cutoff switches in the Dreamliner at issue lacked that locking quality— whether it altogether lacked the locking mechanism or Honeywell manufactured and sold the switches with the locking mechanisms disengaged. Honeywell did not provide warnings or instructions sufficient for Air India or Air India pilots and technicians to address the risks posed by these dangerous switches,” the families have stated in their product liability claims adding that Honeywell gave “inadequate warnings and instructions” to pilots and customers.
The lawsuit further alleges that Honeywell designed the switches knowing they would be located in an area where pilots frequently place or exchange objects and move their hands, making accidental toggling likely, further accusing the company of manufacturing the switches in a manner “that made them fall short of specifications and unreasonably dangerous”.
“With the locking mechanism disengaged or missing, the pilots could inadvertently crash the plane by accidentally brushing against an unprotected toggle switch. This defect was present at the time Honeywell manufactured the switches and at the time Boeing incorporated them into the Dreamliner before Boeing delivered this Dreamliner to Air India,” the lawsuit adds.
The lawsuit also accused Boeing of doing nothing despite being aware of the risks posed by the defective fuel cutoff switches.
“Before and after Boeing designed, manufactured, and sold the Dreamliner to Air India, Boeing actually knew of the risks posed by the defective fuel cutoff switches and Boeing’s placement of those switches adjacent to and under the thrust levers. Boeing had actual knowledge that an inadvertent fuel cutoff would occur, the engines would shut down, and its aircraft would crash and likely result in numerous fatalities,” it states.
The plaintiffs seek damages for the deaths of Kantaben Dhirubhai Paghadal, Naavya Chirag Paghadal, Kuberbhai Patel and Babiben Patel who were among the passengers who died in the crash.
(Edited by Viny Mishra)
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