Ahmedabad, June 13, 2025: In the aftermath of the tragic crash of an Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner in Ahmedabad, retired Air India Captain Rakesh Rai has come forward with technical insights that shed light on possible causes behind the incident. Speaking to NDTV, Captain Rai — who previously piloted the same aircraft model — raised crucial questions regarding the technical sequence during takeoff.
The Boeing 787 Dreamliner, regarded as one of the world’s most advanced commercial aircraft, crashed just moments after takeoff from Ahmedabad airport. This is the first such crash in the aircraft’s 15-year global service history.
What Might Have Gone Wrong?
CCTV footage of the incident, which was reviewed by Captain Rai, showed a seemingly normal takeoff roll. He observed that the aircraft appeared to lift off without any visible malfunction until it reached an altitude of around 600 feet. According to him, “Everything seemed fine until that point, but the descent began unexpectedly after that.”
Captain Rai raised a critical point: why did the landing gear remain deployed even after takeoff? Normally, pilots perform a series of standard steps immediately after takeoff. At around 50 feet altitude, the pilot monitoring typically calls out “Positive Rate,” followed by the flying pilot initiating the command “Gear Up.” However, in this case, the landing gear remained down even at 600 feet, which is highly unusual.
Possible Causes
Captain Rai offered two main theories:
- Bird Strike Leading to Loss of Thrust:
A bird strike could have led to engine thrust failure. In such confusion, the pilots may have forgotten to retract the landing gear. With reduced thrust and extended landing gear acting like a speed brake, the aircraft could have been unable to climb further. - Human Error – Wrong Lever Pulled:
Another possibility is human error, where the pilot monitoring mistakenly raised the flaps instead of the landing gear. This could have led to a sudden loss of lift and rapid descent. “I’m not claiming this is exactly what happened, but it’s a plausible theory,” said Rai.
Limited Time to React
Rai further explained that the aircraft was traveling at approximately 320 km/h at takeoff. From lift-off to the crash, the entire sequence lasted only 59 seconds. “In such emergencies, it takes at least 4 to 5 seconds just to understand what is happening. In 20–25 seconds, there’s very little a pilot can do to recover,” he added.
High-Tech Aircraft with Electronic Safety Checks
The Boeing 787 features advanced digital systems and automated checklists. Captain Rai highlighted that before takeoff, multiple safety checks are conducted, and any missed procedure typically triggers alarms and warning lights. “Even a sleeping pilot would be alerted,” he remarked, emphasizing how rare such a catastrophic failure is in this aircraft.
Casualties and Investigation
The crash resulted in 265 fatalities, including 241 passengers. Only six bodies could be identified and handed over to families due to the severe impact. The remaining were sent to Ahmedabad Civil Hospital for further identification.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and other investigative authorities are continuing to probe the crash, taking into account data from the flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder.
