Air India Crash: New Evidence Points to Technical Failure

On June 12, 2025, Air India Flight 171 — a Boeing 787 Dreamliner — crashed into the hostel block of B.J. Medical College in Ahmedabad just 40 seconds after takeoff, killing 260 people and injuring dozens more. It was the first fatal crash involving Boeing’s flagship Dreamliner.

From the start, some reports suggested the pilots may have mistakenly shut off the aircraft’s fuel supply. But Beasley Allen’s Mike Andrews, who represents more than 100 victims’ families, says the evidence tells a different story — one that points to a preventable technical failure.

The New Theory: A Water Leak That Killed the Engines

Mike’s investigation, supported by whistleblower accounts and recent U.S. safety directives, centers on a potable water system leak inside the aircraft:

• Water intrusion from faulty or poorly installed waterline couplings may have seeped into the electronics bay beneath the cockpit.
• This could have caused a short circuit in critical electrical systems, triggering an automatic shutdown of both engines’ fuel control switches.
• The result: a sudden, total loss of thrust — leaving the crew with no chance to recover.

This theory gained weight after the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued an airworthiness directive in May 2025 — just weeks before the crash — warning that certain Boeing 787s were at risk of water leaks that could cause electrical failures critical to flight.

Why It Matters

If proven, this would mean:

• The crash was not caused by pilot error, clearing the names of Captain Sumeet Sabharwal and First Officer Clive Kunder.
• Boeing may have been aware of the risk before the accident but failed to ensure all aircraft were fixed in time.
• Families could pursue significantly higher compensation in U.S. courts, especially if negligence is established.

The Fight for Answers and Accountability

Mike has filed Freedom of Information Act requests to access the aircraft’s flight data and cockpit voice recorders. He says the families deserve full transparency — and that blaming the pilots without all the evidence is “unjust to the dead” and their loved ones.

He has stood beside families affected by some of the world’s most devastating air disasters, including the Boeing 737 Max 8 tragedies. In each case, his mission has been the same: to uncover the truth, hold negligent parties accountable, and push for reforms that make air travel safer.