The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has launched a formal investigation into the tragic crash of Air India Flight AI-171, in accordance with international aviation norms and India’s domestic regulations.
As a signatory to the International Civil Aviation Organization’s (ICAO) Chicago Convention of 1944, India is obligated to investigate civil aviation accidents under the standards laid out in ICAO Annex 13. The investigation is being carried out under the Aircraft (Investigation of Accidents and Incidents) Rules, 2017.
In line with protocol, the AAIB promptly formed a multidisciplinary investigation team on June 13, 2025. The team is headed by the Director General of AAIB and includes an aviation medicine specialist, an air traffic control officer, and representatives from the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), as the aircraft was manufactured and designed in the United States.
Both the Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) and Flight Data Recorder (FDR), commonly referred to as “black boxes,” have been successfully recovered from the crash site. The CVR was located on a rooftop on June 13, while the FDR was found amidst debris on June 16.
To ensure the integrity of the investigation, the black boxes were secured under 24-hour police protection and CCTV surveillance in Ahmedabad. On June 24, both devices were transported under high security to the AAIB laboratory in Delhi via Indian Air Force aircraft. The front black box arrived at 2:00 pm with the DG AAIB, while the rear box followed at 5:15 pm with a second AAIB team.
On the evening of June 24, a joint team from AAIB and the NTSB commenced data extraction. The memory module from the Crash Protection Module (CPM) of the front black box was safely retrieved and successfully accessed the following day, June 25. The data download was completed at the AAIB Lab in Delhi.
The CVR and FDR data are now under detailed analysis, which will help reconstruct the sequence of events leading up to the accident. Investigators aim to identify contributing factors with the goal of enhancing aviation safety and preventing similar incidents in the future.
All steps taken so far have adhered to both Indian law and international obligations, with authorities emphasizing a time-bound and transparent approach to the investigation.
