Air India Crash Response Stokes Frustration Over Lack Of Transparency

Nearly a week after India's deadliest passenger jet crash in decades, official updates from government sources remain scarce. This stands in sharp contrast to international norms, as seen in other countries like the U.S., South Korea, and China, where authorities typically issue daily briefings, engage with media outlets, and actively support victims' families. 

"The rule with accidents communications is 'do not leave a void', so they should be updating periodically," Darren Straker, a former head of air accident investigation units in the United Arab Emirates and Hong Kong, told Bloomberg, adding, "All you can say is they're providing the minimum information required."

At least 270 people died following the crash of Air India Flight 171 late last week, including some on the ground in the western Indian city of Ahmedabad. Preliminary findings, cited by the Wall Street Journal, suggest that the 787 Dreamliner deployed a ram air turbine shortly after takeoff—raising questions about whether the aircraft's engines failed.

Speculation about what exactly happened has mounted due to an information vacuum, as India's civil aviation ministry has only held one press conference since the crash.

While rescue crews have recovered the plane's black boxes, no probable cause has been identified. Foreign aviation experts, including those from Boeing and U.S. agencies, are assisting investigators on the ground. 

India has established a committee to review the official response to the crash.

Here's more from Bloomberg:

A representative for India's civil aviation ministry didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. India has set up a committee to look into various aspects of the crash response, including formulating a comprehensive Standard Operating Procedure and suggest the roles of all agencies and organizations at the federal and state level in dealing with such incidents.

Air accident investigations can take months, if not years, to find the sources contributing to a crash, such as possible maintenance errors, pilot missteps, or design flaws.

In an interview with India's public broadcaster, the sole survivor, a British national, recalled that the plane appeared to freeze midair for several seconds shortly after takeoff. Flight data shows the 787 reached a maximum altitude of 625 feet before transmitting location data stopped about 50 seconds into the flight.