Pilot was in hurry to take off: Air India inquiry

An investigation into the death of Air India engineer last December has indicated that pilots were in a hurry to start the aircraft and they had started taxiing without getting the requisite signals.

Also, the airline in its internal discussion, mentioned that there was no proper lighting arrangements between the parking bay and taxi way, and the pilot was unable to see the engineer and started the engine. This was revealed by an airline source. The final report of the investigation is yet to be submitted.

According to sources, the airline, on its part, has listed the faults that led to the accident. Meanwhile, the pilots of the aircraft are still grounded.

The Air Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) is probing the matter, and according to sources, the national carrier is eager to know the report of the investigation but has not received it yet.

An Air India official from the safety department, told this paper that the airline had demanded that it be given the primary investigation report, so it could take the required precautions. “In our internal investigation, we realised that the pilot was in a hurry to take off and he had just arrived from another flight hardly half an hour before. We also want to know how the miscommunication took place,” said the official, who did not wish to be named.

On the another hand, AI officials, also said that Mumbai airport had less space and many a time, aircraft have to travel by taking several turns between the parking bay and taxi way, making it difficult for the pilot to negotiate the congested runway.

On December 16 last year, a Hyderabad-bound flight AI 619 was moving out of bay 28 for its take-off scheduled at 8.40 pm. AI619 was readying for take-off towards the runway but at 8.45 pm, on bay 28, Ravi Subramanian was sucked into the aircraft engine. Following the incident, the police took the statements of those concerned and sent it to AAIB which six months on, is yet to produce any report. When this paper approached AAIB officials, they refused to comment on the issue. A top official from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation said, “We have handed over all the documents to AAIB, and now the onus is on it to bring out the report.”