SC asks Centre to file report on procedural protocol followed in Air India plane crash probe

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court asked the Centre on Wednesday to file a brief report on the "procedural protocol" followed so far, after it was informed that the investigation into the June 12, 2025, Air India plane crash by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Board (AAIB) is at its fag end.

Air India's Boeing 787-8 flight AI171, en route to London's Gatwick airport, was operated by pilot-in-command Captain Sumeet Sabharwal and co-pilot Captain Clive Kunder. The crash took place after the plane took off from Gujarat's Ahmedabad, killing 260 people, including 241 passengers and crew on board.

Former Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani was also among the victims.

On Wednesday, a bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi was told by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who appeared in the court representing the Centre and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), that the AAIB probe is in final stages and some parts it need to be carried out in foreign countries.

The top law officer said three related pleas on the matter may be listed after three weeks for a comprehensive hearing.

The bench was initially of the view that the AAIB inquiry report be submitted before it in a sealed cover. Mehta assured the judges that the details of the inquiry will be shared with them.

The bench said the AAIB's role is to determine the cause of the crash and not to impute motive.

Appearing for NGO Safety Matters Foundation, lawyer Prashant Bhushan said three other Boeing 787s had met with similar incidents and the Centre has 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 (the crash) 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," the solicitor general said.

The bench asked the Centre to file a report on the procedural protocol followed so far in the probe.

"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 and fixed the three pleas for hearing after three weeks.

On January 28, the top court agreed to hear the pleas that have alleged that the official probe into the June 12, 2025, Air India plane crash has violated the citizens' fundamental rights to life, equality and access to truthful information.

On November 13 last year, the top court said deceased pilot Captain Sabharwal was not blamed in the AAIB's preliminary report into the crash.

It had also issued a notice to the Centre and the DGCA on a plea moved by Pushkaraj Sabharwal, the father of Captain Sabharwal.

Pushkaraj Sabharwal and the Federation of Indian Pilots moved the Supreme Court for a court-monitored inquiry headed by a former judge into the crash.

The court was hearing three petitions filed by an NGO, a law student and the father of the deceased pilot, seeking an independent, court-monitored investigation into the crash.

Among the 241 dead were 169 Indians, 52 Britons, seven Portuguese nationals, one Canadian and 12 crew members.

The lone survivor of the crash was Vishwashkumar Ramesh, a British national.

Bhushan said a parallel inquiry should be conducted into the accident of such a major scale.

He submitted that serious accidents require a court of enquiry and not just an investigation by the AAIB.

On September 22 last year, while entertaining the NGO's plea, the court termed "unfortunate and irresponsible" the selective publication of a preliminary report on the crash that outlined lapses on the part of the pilots and paved the way for a "media narrative".