Air India Crash: MPs Grill Top Officials On Black Box, Safety Lapses In Panel Meet
Members of Parliament on Tuesday grilled top aviation officials, including the CEO of Air India, over the recent deadly plane crash in Ahmedabad, demanding to know the timeline for the analysis of the aircraft’s black box and questioning the overall state of airline safety in the country.
The tense discussions took place during a meeting of the parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC). Although the official agenda was to discuss airport charges, the meeting was completely dominated by the June 12 Air India (AI-171) crash that killed 260 people.
Top officials from the Ministry of Civil Aviation, aviation regulator DGCA, Airports Authority of India (AAI), and the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) were present. Air India CEO Wilson Campbell, along with senior executives from IndiGo and Akasa Air, also attended the meeting.
According to sources, the MPs asked pointed questions about the crash probe, seeking clarity on when the analysis of the flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder (the “black box”) would be completed. The black box is crucial for providing a detailed insight into the final moments of the London-bound Boeing 787 that crashed into a medical college hostel shortly after takeoff.
Lawmakers also questioned the selection criteria for the crash investigation committee formed by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) and asked if any foreign aviation experts had been consulted.
The committee expressed serious displeasure over the functioning of the DGCA, which is responsible for ensuring airline safety compliance. The MPs flagged a recent spate of safety lapses reported in May and June, where several flights were cancelled or diverted due to technical malfunctions.
Concerns were also raised about the “high-handed behaviour” of private airlines and the exorbitant surge in airfares from Srinagar to other cities in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, where ticket prices skyrocketed to as high as Rs 65,000. The MPs called for tighter oversight of airlines to prevent such price gouging during emergencies.
