Air India Flight 171: Dhalla Calls for Patience in Determining Cause, Cites ‘Startle Effect’ and Technical Issues

In the wake of the Air India flight 171 crash, Captain Prashant Dhalla, a former DGCA Flight Operations Inspector, cautions against jumping to conclusions about pilot error. He proposes that the ‘startle effect’ could have affected the pilots. He pointed to the preliminary report, which referenced a deployed Ram Air Turbine (RAT), as a potential indicator of pilots struggling with mechanical issues. Dhalla stated that before assigning blame, it’s important to consider potential electrical failures and the pilots’ actions to manage engine problems. He mentioned the safety features on fuel switches and emphasized the need for a full examination of the Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) data. He observed the challenging circumstances of the pilots’ response, which involved managing an emergency and contacting the ATC at very low altitude, and also raised the possibility of a dual-engine flameout.