Air India has grounded a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner (registration VT-ANX) following a pilot's report of a malfunction in the engine fuel control switch (FCS) yesterday. The incident has drawn significant attention due to its uncanny similarities with a fatal 787 crash in Ahmedabad in June 2025.
During the engine start procedure for a flight from London Heathrow to Bengaluru, the left engine fuel control switch of the 787-8 failed to remain locked in the 'RUN' position on two attempts, repeatedly moving towards 'CUTOFF'.
Air India immediately grounded the aircraft upon its arrival in Bengaluru. The airline has initiated a fleet-wide re-inspection of the FCS latches across its 33 Boeing 787s as a "precautionary measure".
The matter has been escalated to Boeing for priority evaluation and reported to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
The recent malfunction has revived concerns regarding the June 12, 2025, crash of an Air India 787-8 (VT-ANB) that killed 260 people owing to the FCS which were found to be in the cut-off position.
However, the question is, is this the missing piece of the puzzle required to explain the abnormal & unusual movement of the FCS on the Air India's ill-fated Ahmedabad-Heathrow flight in June 2025...
A deeper, comprehensive probe centred on the FCS becomes highly imperative now to effectively debunk the pilot error conspiracy theory being fueled, speculated and promoted...
