By Kingsley 
Published: June 13, 2025 | By: India News Desk
A devastating crash of Air India flight AI-171 on Wednesday has shocked the nation and raised serious concerns about aviation safety in India. A viral video of the crash has sparked analysis and concern among aviation experts.
Bob Mann, of aviation consulting firm RW Mann & Co., said the Boeing 787 Dreamliner appeared to be struggling to gain speed on the runway. Despite covering almost the entire 11,000-foot runway, the plane could not achieve liftoff.
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Technical issues before take-off?
Experts believe the aircraft may have had problems before even leaving the ground. Mann suggests a possible input error in the flight management computer — such as entering the wrong aircraft weight — could have affected engine thrust settings.
If the weight was overestimated, the aircraft might have taken off too steeply. If underestimated, the engines may not have delivered sufficient power.
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Flap issues or computer control error?
Another expert, Jeff Guzzetti, observed that there was no visible fire or structural damage, suggesting a lack of lift rather than mechanical failure. He proposed possibilities like flaps being raised incorrectly or an error in flight control programming.
Mann also noted the flaps seemed mispositioned. If adjusted mid-run, this could have reduced lift, causing the aircraft to stall shortly after leaving the runway.
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Casualties and ongoing investigation
The flight was carrying 242 passengers, with 241 confirmed dead. The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) are sending investigators to assist with the probe.
Authorities are awaiting data from the black boxes — the flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder — to determine the exact cause.