Air India has completed precautionary inspections of its Boeing 787-8 aircraft, following a directive from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to inspect specific fuel control switches by July 21. The inspections found no issues with the locking mechanism of the fuel control switch (FCS).
The move comes after an accident report revealed that the fuel cutoff switches on the Boeing 787-8 aircraft moved to the cutoff position within one second of liftoff in the Ahmedabad crash, which killed 260 people. Air India had replaced throttle control modules, including FCS, on its entire fleet of Boeing 787-8 aircraft as per Boeing’s schedule.
According to the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) report, the fuel cutoff switches moved one after another within a 1-second interval just moments after liftoff at an altitude. The DGCA directive enforced compliance with the US Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) bulletin issued in December 2018, warning of potential disengagement of the fuel control switch locking feature on some Boeing aircraft models.
Air India had not carried out inspections recommended in the 2018 FAA advisory on fuel control switch safety, as it was classified as non-mandatory. The airline had completed precautionary inspections on its Boeing 737 Max fleet and found no issues.
Source: https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/air-india-completes-inspection-of-fuel-control-switches-on-boeing-787-planes-no-issues-found-official-8889322