The AI171 plane crash anniversary weighs heavily, and behind every data point, piece of wreckage and finding are real people, according to a US investigator who was part of the probe into the accident.
Air India's Boeing 787-8 or Dreamliner with registration VT-ANB en route to London Gatwick crashed soon after takeoff from Ahmedabad on June 12, 2025, killing 241 people onboard and 19 on the ground.
One passenger survived while all 12 crew members died in the accident that happened during the initial climb. The passengers who died in the crash were citizens from India, the UK, Portugal and Canada.
Patrick Lusch, Senior Air & Space Accident Investigator / Flight Recorder Specialist at Federal Aviation Administration, on Friday, said it was hard to believe that exactly one year has passed since the tragic loss of Air India Flight 171, the first accident involving a Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
"As the FAA's Investigator in Charge and Technical Advisor to the US Accredited Representative, my team and I boarded flights to India just one day after the accident.
"For two weeks on the ground, we joined an international team of dedicated professionals that worked around the clock in tough conditions to uncover the truth and begin the long process of understanding what happened," he said in a post on LinkedIn.
He was part of the probe in the initial days.
While mentioning that this anniversary weighs heavily, Lusch said behind every data point, every piece of wreckage, and every finding are real people.
"Sons, daughters, mothers, fathers, colleagues, and friends whose lives were cut short. Their families continue to carry a pain that time does not simply erase.
"Today, I remember them, and I honour the first responders, investigators, and aviation professionals who poured everything into this effort during those difficult days in India," he said in the post.
Lusch also said that aviation safety is built on the painful lessons of tragedy and that "every improvement in training, design, procedures, and oversight that follows an accident is a direct tribute to those we lost".
In a separate LinkedIn post, AAIB's Investigator in Charge, Sanjay Kumar Singh, expressed his condolences to the departed souls.
According to him, everyone worked together on the crash site to capture every possible evidence.
"Tough conditions, environment filled with emotions, and surrounded by NOK (Next of Kin), teary eyes, we worked together and continue to do so to uncover the facts. Accredited representative and technical advisor and AAIB India, DGCA responded quickly along with first responders," he said.
The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), in its interim statement on the progress of the probe, said significant progress has been made, and the final report will be released upon completion of all investigative activities, requisite international review and consultation processes.
A five-member core team is investigating the accident, and various agencies, companies concerned, and experts are assisting the team in the investigation.
A representative from the US National Transport Safety Board (NTSB) is also involved in the probe.