Amid the growing furor over the fuel switch locks in the AIB report on the Air India Dreamliner crash, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has now asked all Indian carriers to conduct checks on fuel control switches of Boeing aircraft, including the B787 Dreamliner and some B737s.
The preliminary report into the June 12 Air India crash in Ahmedabad states that fuel supply to the engines was cut off as position of the fuel supply switch was changed from run to cutoff and then back to run again.
Some foreign airlines, including Etihad have already begun these checks on their Dreamliners.
The DGCA reportedly order states: “(US) Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a ‘special airworthiness information bulletin’ (SAIB) on December 17, 2018, regarding the potential for disengagement of the fuel control switch locking feature on Boeing Company Model 717-200 airplanes; Model 737-700, -700C, -800, and -900ER series airplanes; Model 737-8 and -9 airplanes; Model 747-400, -400D, -400F, -8, and -8F series airplanes; Model 757-200, -200CB, -200PF, and -300 series airplanes; Model 767-200, -300,300F, -400ER, and -2C series airplanes; Model 787-8, -9, and-10 airplanes; Model MD-11 and MD-11F airplanes; and Model MD-90-30 airplanes.
“It has come to the notice of DGCA, that several operators- internationally as well as domestic have initiated inspection on their aircraft fleet as per the (December 17, 2018) SAIB…. all airline operators of the affected aircraft are hereby advised to complete the inspection (by) no later than July 21, 2025. Inspection plan and report after accomplishment of inspection shall be submitted to this office under intimation to the concerned regional office,” it said.
Notably, quoting FAA December 2018 notification, the AAIB report stated that “all applicable Airworthiness Directives and Alert Service Bulletins were complied on the aircraft as well as engines” and that “there has been no defect reported pertaining to the fuel control switch since 2023 on VT-ANB”
“The FAA issued a Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin (SAIB) No. NM-18-33 on December 17, 2018, regarding the potential disengagement of the fuel control switch locking feature. This SAIB was issued based on reports from operators of Model 737 airplanes that the fuel control switches were installed with the locking feature disengaged.
“The airworthiness concern was not considered an unsafe condition that would warrant airworthiness directive (AD) by the FAA. The fuel control switch design, including the locking feature, is similar on various Boeing airplane models including part number 4TL837-3D which is fitted in B787-8 aircraft VT-ANB.
“As per the information from Air India, the suggested inspections were not carried out as the SAIB was advisory and not mandatory. The scrutiny of maintenance records revealed that the throttle control module was replaced on VT-ANB in 2019 and 2023. However, the reason for the replacement was not linked to the fuel control switch. There has been no defect reported pertaining to the fuel control switch since 2023 on VT-ANB,” according the report
VT-ANB is the registration of Air India’s B787-8 aircraft bearing registration.
VT is the registration prefix for aircraft in India
