Black box recovered from Air India crash flown to Delhi; Decoding underway

The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has initiated the crucial process of analyzing data from the black boxes recovered from the site of Air India Flight AI171, which tragically crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad on June 12. The government confirmed on Thursday that both the Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) and the Flight Data Recorder (FDR) were successfully retrieved from the crash site – one on June 13 and the other on June 16 – and have since been securely transported to Delhi for decoding.

These vital flight recorders, essential for understanding the sequence of events leading to the accident, were brought from Ahmedabad to Delhi by Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft on June 24, under stringent security measures including round-the-clock police protection and CCTV surveillance. The front black box arrived at the AAIB lab at 2:00 PM on June 24, followed by the rear black box at 5:15 PM the same day, delivered by a second AAIB team.

Data extraction commenced on the evening of June 24 at the AAIB lab in Delhi. A multidisciplinary team, led by the Director General of AAIB and including technical experts from the AAIB and the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) – the investigative agency from the aircraft's state of manufacture and design – successfully retrieved the Crash Protection Module (CPM) from the front black box. By June 25, the memory module was successfully accessed, and its data downloaded.

The ongoing analysis of the CVR and FDR data is a critical step in reconstructing the events of Air India Flight AI171. This comprehensive effort aims to identify all contributing factors to the accident, with the ultimate goal of enhancing aviation safety and preventing future occurrences. The government reiterated that all actions taken are in full compliance with domestic laws and international obligations, particularly ICAO Annex 13, which governs aircraft accident and incident investigations.