AI-171 has a clean history, says Air India chairperson N Chandrasekaran, expresses regret over Ahmedabad plane crash

Days after the ill-fated Air India flight AI-171 crashed, claiming several lives, N Chandrasekaran, Chairman of Tata Sons and Air India, issued an apology on national television.

In an interview with news outlet Times Now, Chandrasekaran said, "It is an extremely difficult situation where I have no words to express to console any of the families of those who died. I deeply regret that this accident happened in a Tata-run airline. And I feel very sorry. All we can do is to be with the families at this time, grieve with them, and we will do everything to support them at this hour and beyond."

While the black box has been recovered from the aircraft, Chandrasekaran said it could take a month for preliminary findings to be disclosed. He highlighted that the plane under scrutiny had a clean history and no irregularities had been flagged in the past.

"There are speculations about human error, speculations about airlines, speculations about engines, maintenance, all kinds. There are a lot of speculations and a lot of theories. But the fact that I know so far is that this particular aircraft, AI-171, has a clean history. As for the engines, the right engine was a new engine put in March 2025. The left engine was last serviced in 2023 and is due for its next maintenance check in December 2025. Both engine histories are clean. Both pilots were exceptional. Captain Sabharwal had more than 11,500 hours of flying experience, the first officer, Clive (Kunder) had more than 3400 hours of flying experience," he continued.

"What I hear from colleagues is that they were excellent pilots and great professionals. So, we can't jump to any conclusions. I am told by all the experts that the black box and recorders will definitely tell the story. So, we just have to wait for that," he added.

India witnessed a horrific aviation disaster on June 12 as Air India flight AI-171 crashed minutes after takeoff from Ahmedabad's Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport. The plane burst into flames after piercing through a medical college mess, where young doctors were having their meals.

A high-level government committee has been formed to investigate the crash and a thorough report on the incident will be recorded and to be submitted within 3 months.